The Tale Of Uzumaki Natsumi
by DMGmana
Summary: Uzumaki Naruto. We all know how he starts out and what he matures into. But what if he was a girl instead? What changes will there be because of it? It's more than what you might think, and less than what you might expect. Will follow the main plots of the story, but with what I think will be different if Naruto was a girl.
1. Prologue

**Author's Note: This idea has been floating in my head and would not leave me alone until I got down to write it. This story is of course, about a gender-bent Uzumaki Naruto. Uzumaki Natsumi, in this case. The main point of this fanfic is to explore what I think it would be like if Naruto was a girl to begin with. I know most fanfics with gender-bent Naruto have her identity and gender sealed away and either have her know about it or not. I wanted to try a different path.**

**I won't hide her identity or gender. There are no mob attacks or abuse other than social isolation. There are no councils. Her relationships with the Konoha 11 and Sasuke will be changed. Some drastic, some minor, some with no changes. If you see the pairing, it will be obvious just which characters I will be focusing on the most. I will align it with canon to the best of my knowledge and the differences between this fanfic and canon will be listed and explained at the end of each chapter. I will most likely not use anime fillers for this fanfic. If I do, I will let you readers know. So for now, please enjoy this prologue!**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto at all. I won't repeat myself. This should be obvious the first time you see it.**

*****Break Line*****

For as long as she could remember, 8-year-old Uzumaki Natsumi knew she was never liked by the villagers of Konohagakure. She was a citizen herself, but no-one ever liked her. The only people she knew that cared for her could be counted on one hand. The reinstated Third Hokage, one of the people that cared for her, had advised her to take the career path of a ninja since he knew about her troubles. That was fine because she dreamed of becoming a ninja in the first place. She wanted to be a great Hokage just like her idol, the deceased Fourth Hokage Namikaze Minato. More importantly, by becoming Hokage, she would get all the acknowledgement she ever wanted from the villagers.

When she was first enrolled into the Ninja Academy, she was rotated between so many classes simply because the teachers did not want her in their class. In retaliation for the blatant dislike when teachers were supposed to be fair, she pranked each and every teacher simply to get out of their classes. Hey, that got them to pay attention to her. That was good enough. It was not until a rookie teacher named Umino Iruka was assigned to her class. Despite being pranked as well, he had chosen not to take action and simply told Natsumi to return to her seat. By not getting told to stand outside for punishment or such, she felt she was once again being ignored. It took some time for Natsumi to notice, but she eventually realized Iruka was the only teacher that actually attempted to be fair to her, even for punishments. That raised him really high in her books. She was glad and relieved he would be their primary instructor throughout their years studying in the Academy.

*****Break Line*****

On a seemingly normal day after class, Natsumi was surprised when someone called her name just outside the Academy. Turning to look and see just who it was, she noticed a girl just as small as her jogging towards her. Natsumi tended not to remember stuff she deemed unimportant, such as the names of her classmates, so she did not recognize the girl that approached her.

"Is there something you want with me?" Natsumi asked. She may not recognize the girl, but she was happy that someone chose to even speak with her without her doing something to them first.

"I... I want to thank you for saving me that day!" the girl bowed deeply towards her.

"I... saved you?" Natsumi did not recall saving any... Oh! Now she remembered! She had stopped three bullies from picking on somebody just a few days ago. She believed she failed since she had been knocked out, and subsequently pushed that incident to the back of her mind. "You're that girl!"

"Yes!" the girl piped up with a shy but happy smile. "Um... I'm Hyuuga Hinata. We're in the same class. It's a pleasure to meet you!" Hinata introduced herself in a formal manner and bowed again.

"I'm Uzumaki Natsumi! Nice to meet you too!" Natsumi returned the formal greeting with a very informal one, sounding almost rude. No-one could really blame her since she was never treated with any sort of formality in her life. Before anything else can be said, her stomach grumbled loudly. That gave Hinata something to work with.

"Ah, here!" she almost shoved her bag towards Natsumi. "You can have my lunch, if you don't mind..."

"Really?" a huge smile broke out on her face. When Hinata nodded, she nearly whooped in joy. "Thanks a lot! It's a huge help!" They settled down near the tree with the swing and unpacked her lunch box. Natsumi took a bite and finding the taste wonderful, began shoveling the rest of the food into her mouth.

"You must be really hungry if you're eating like that..." Hinata commented, a little put off by the way she was eating.

"Hmm?" Natsumi swallowed. "No, not really. I can hold on for longer until I can get to my usual place where I have my dinner. It's just that your food is really delicious!"

"Thank you very much... though I'm not the one who made it..." a delighted blush appeared on Hinata's face.

"That was great! Thanks for the food, Hinata-chan! You're the first friend who offered to share food with me!" Natsumi thanked her.

"Friend...?" she mumbled.

"Yeah! Actually, you're my very first friend my age, so that makes you my best friend! What do you say, Hinata-chan?"

"Yes, of course! We're friends now, Natsumi-san," Hinata nodded in agreement.

"Nope, you're not!" Natsumi frowned. "Best friends don't call each other '-san'. Try again," she teased the shy girl with a foxy smile.

"S-Sorry, Natsumi-chan!" Hinata gave a shy but very bright smile. This time, Natsumi really did whoop in joy and hugged her new best friend whose face exploded into crimson with the physical interaction. She quickly got over her blush and returned the hug she felt was so desperate for acceptance. Hinata had been watching Natsumi every day until this day and she knew how hard and painful her childhood had been up till now. In return, she had been drawing strength from her. Even with nothing to rely on, she still never gave up on herself or in her dream. Greatly inspired by that, she too decided that she would try her best to grow strong and to never give up so she could be acknowledged by her family. But for now, the two new best friends had each other to help them through their respective predicaments.

The next day in class, Natsumi was quick to seek out Hinata and rushed to the unoccupied seat to her, giving a boisterous morning greeting to her new best friend. Their classmates that were present before she arrived snapped their heads to their direction, shock and wonder written on their faces. How in the world did the loudest student and the quietest student suddenly get along? Since the start of the Academy over a month ago, they had never spoken to each other even once. Just when did they become friends with each other without anyone noticing anything? Hinata's face turned bright red when she saw everyone staring at the two of them but nonetheless returned a warm morning greeting to Natsumi. A smile broke out automatically on her face when Natsumi's face brightened up like the sun.

*****A month later*****

Iruka was very surprised to see just how fast Hinata and Natsumi grew so close together. They were inseparable whenever they were in the Academy together to the point Hinata made lunches just for Natsumi everyday so that she would not leave Academy grounds without permission to eat at the Ichiraku ramen stand. He had thought them sitting together was a one time occurrence but quickly corrected that thought when he saw them sitting together everyday since then. It was something he was glad for since Hinata kept Natsumi from getting too rowdy in class and at the best of times, actually managed to get her to pay attention to his lessons even if her eyelids were constantly drooping. Hinata was still as quiet as a mouse but he could often hear them whispering to each other no thanks to Natsumi. When he called them out on it, Natsumi was very quick to deflect blame away from Hinata. It did not take anyone with a genius intellect to see how protective the loud prankster was of her best friend.

Besides getting Natsumi to behave relatively better, Iruka often spotted the two of them staying behind in class. Discreetly observing them on one occasion, he was surprised to see Hinata actually coaching Natsumi on how to read and write. From marking their homework, he did see a gradual improvement in Natsumi's handwriting and grammar. The only thing he was peeved about was how Natsumi was able to give Hinata her complete attention without any trouble or loss of focus. Why couldn't she do that for him? Sighing in slight exasperation, he allowed himself a small smile as he was happy to see such bright smiles on his two admittedly favorite students.

*****Three months later*****

Hinata had always kept her hair neatly cut in a hime-cut style, so she took notice of Natsumi's growing hair. The first time she saw her hair, it was cut roughly like a boy's. Now, her hair had smoothed itself out as it got longer and reached her shoulders. On a random impulse, Hinata started to play and weave her fingers through Natsumi's hair. It was so soft and silky that she often found herself very tempted to play with it for long periods of time. Natsumi never minded since Hinata looked so happy to play with it.

Natsumi, on the other hand, did not understand what Hinata found so fun about playing with her hair. When she asked, she replied that it was soothing for her and helped her relax. When Natsumi suggested Hinata do the same so she could try it out for herself, Hinata sadly shook her head. She explained that in the Hyuuga clan, most of her clan members grew their hair out as tradition. It was akin to a symbol to show their strength. She admitted that in her family's eyes, she was considered weak. Even her 3-year-old little sister Hanabi was stronger than her. She decided that until she could prove she was strong enough in her family's eyes, she would not grow her hair out.

Natsumi was furious when she heard that, loudly protesting that the clan members who failed to see just how great and strong Hinata was were just plain stupid. Natsumi trained hard to make sure she could one day be strong enough to make her dream of being Hokage come true, and she knew firsthand just how hardworking Hinata was. They were always training together if Hinata could spare the time outside of her own clan training, and she trained just as hard as Natsumi did. It was no secret between the two of them that Natsumi always lasted longer but Hinata would always push herself to her limits to try and keep up with her.

Hinata pleaded with her not to do anything reckless towards her clan or pull any pranks on any of the clan members. Natsumi gave her word reluctantly, since she was more than eager to prove to them how wrong they were. No matter how tempting the urge was, she was never going to break her word. A promise made was a promise kept, especially when it was a promise to Hinata. She would never go back on her word as that was her ninja way. In exchange for her promise, Natsumi declared that she would grow her own hair out really long for the both of them. Hinata was shocked and insisted she did not have to go through with it but she would have none of it. She said that her hair would represent just how much she believed in Hinata and herself and that they would one day succeed in making their dreams and hopes a reality. Hinata was so touched by her best friend's words that she broke down crying and gave her a huge hug, promising that she would work even harder not to let them both down.

*****A year later, age 9*****

Hinata had gotten worried when Natsumi's hair had grown so long it started to pool around her feet even when she was standing straight up. It did not help that they were the two smallest people in their class. She was worried that someone would take advantage of her hair during sparring sessions, and that fear was all but inevitable. Natsumi had declared Uchiha Sasuke, the top student in their class, as her rival some time ago when they first sparred together. In another sparring session, Sasuke was not hesitant to grab her hair and use it against her. As a result, her hair got damaged and was ripped harshly like a hand-torn paper. Natsumi was clearly distraught over it as Hinata knew how important it was for her.

However, since that day, Natsumi never turned up to the Academy. After a week of absence, a worried Iruka entrusted Hinata to look for Natsumi and gave her her address. He allowed her to leave class midday to help figure out what was wrong with the blonde girl. Quickly finding the shoddy apartment Natsumi lived in, Hinata went to the designated door and knocked politely.

"Natsumi-chan? Please open up. It's me, Hinata," Hinata spoke up. She had gotten so worried for her best friend that her own studies were getting affected.

"...Come in, Hinata-chan. It's open," Natsumi replied weakly and without any hint of emotion.

Hinata gently entered and was horrified to see locks of blonde hair haphazardly strewn all over the floor. Natsumi was sitting in a miserable wreck in the middle of it all with her hair utterly ruined.

"Natsumi-chan, are you alright? What happened?" Hinata ran to her friend and checked her for any sign of injuries. Fortunately, there were none. She did see a pair of scissors nearby. Taking a closer look at Natsumi's hair, she could tell that she had tried to fix the damage done by Sasuke. She apparently could not get it right and it only got worse the more she tried to cut. "Natsumi-chan..."

"...Sorry, Hinata-chan," Natsumi whispered. "I tried to fix it, I really did... But..." Tears of frustration dripped down from her eyes. "I couldn't protect my promise to you... I'm sorry, Hinata-chan..." Instead of any negative actions she expected Hinata to do, she felt Hinata wrap her arms around her in a hug.

"It's okay, Natsumi-chan. You didn't break your promise. I know you still believe in me. That's all that matters, so it's okay," Hinata comforted her best friend who had suddenly felt so small and fragile in her hands.

"Hinata-chan..." Now the tears turned into those of relief and joy as she returned the hug.

"Are you feeling better now?" Natsumi nodded as she wiped away her tears with her sleeve. "Should we clean up your home? I don't mind helping."

"You're really the best friend anyone can ask for, Hinata-chan!" Natsumi dived in for another hug, rubbing her cheeks against Hinata's own like an affectionate kitten. Hinata's face quickly turned red from embarrassment and it took some time for her to get rid of the light-headed feeling that suddenly appeared.

They started cleaning up all the hair and whatever mess that had been lying around at the time before Hinata noticed something. Looking more carefully now that most of the hair had been swept away, Natsumi's house was full of dirt and dust. It was not necessarily messy, but the house just did not seem clean. Turning to look at her, she realized Natsumi had little idea how to do proper housework. Oddly, a fond smile came to Hinata's face. That was just like her.

"When we're done, I'll fix your hair for you, Natsumi-chan. It seems you need some remedial on keeping your home clean," Hinata giggled softly into her hands.

"You're a real life-saver, you know that Hinata-chan?" There. The smile as bright as the sun. Hinata loved seeing that smile on Natsumi's face and hoped it would never disappear. After fixing her hair, Natsumi's hair was once again shoulder-length. Hinata showed Natsumi how to properly do household chores. Back at the Hyuuga household, Hinata made an effort not to rely on the branch house servants and learned how to at least clean her own room. Hinata promised to visit once a week to monitor Natsumi as she cleaned her home and would lend her a helping hand if necessary until she was able to do it on her own without any troubles.

On one of her visits, the topic of laundry came up. Apparently, Natsumi had a habit of not washing her clothes until she had worn every clean one. Her washing machine had broken down and she was stuck without any clean clothes to wear and asked to borrow some of Hinata's clothes. Hinata had no problems with lending them but did give her a small non-chiding lecture of how she should wash her clothes regularly instead of only once in a long time. What horrified Hinata was that Natsumi never wore any panties at all! Instead, she had worn boxers as her undergarment of choice for her entire life. She claimed that she never knew what panties were. She thought everyone wore the same undergarments. Seeing how panicked Hinata was as she tried to explain how unhealthy it was to the female hygiene, Natsumi promised she would get herself some panties. It was not a pleasant experience for the resident blonde due to the inherent tightness of the 'proper' undergarment as Hinata encouraged her on.

*****Six months later*****

Natsumi's hair was once again growing too long and knowing the importance it held for her, Hinata suggested that she tie her hair. To her surprise, Natsumi did not know how to do so. For the last year and a half, she had seen the hairstyles of their female classmates that had their hair tied and it puzzled her as to how their hair turned out the way they did. Hinata sweat-dropped when she somehow arrived at the conclusion it was some type of jutsu. Hinata took it upon herself to teach Natsumi how to tie her hair. Secretly though, she was very happy since she got to play with that soft and beautiful hair even more.

Natsumi eventually settled for pigtails, a pair of ponytails tied at opposite sides of her head. It helped to drastically shorten the impractical length of hair to more manageable waist-length hair. She became even more determined now as she claimed the pigtails represented their bond of friendship. If her entire hair symbolized their beliefs in each other and their dreams, then her pigtails symbolized their separate person connected to an inseparable bond formed by their beliefs. Tears of joy sprung to Hinata's eyes as she was so overjoyed that Natsumi would never stop believing in her. It did not matter if her own father deemed her useless. All she needed to keep going was Natsumi's undying support for her.

Hinata wanted to do more for Natsumi, but she claimed that Hinata had already done something for her that she would never be able to repay even with her own life. Hinata had saved her from the hell of loneliness by being her friend. Natsumi had been so alone in the first few years of her life, always being resented and ostracized by the villagers. Even though the Hokage and the Ichiraku father-daughter pair did not shun her, they had more important duties to do. That sense of loneliness never faded away and it was only until Hinata came into her life that she finally saw a light of hope. Hinata was the beacon that shined with that light. Without Hinata, Natsumi admitted she was unsure of how far and how long she would have lasted. Just for being a friend, Natsumi was eternally grateful. The two best friends embraced one another, drawing strength from each other as they promised to always be there for each other for as long as they lived.

*****Three years later, age 12*****

Their final year in the Academy had just begun as well as their transition into teenagers. Among all the girls in their class, Hinata and Natsumi were the first two to hit puberty. Their breasts were starting to develop as well as the start of their monthly periods. Quite embarrassed that her figure was clearly developing faster than any other girl except for Natsumi, Hinata started wearing a huge cream-colored hooded-jacket to hide her growth. Natsumi was already wearing her over-sized orange tracksuit that she got some months ago that hid her growing figure. While Natsumi never paid any thought to her figure or intended to hide it in the first place, she was amused when Hinata had gotten a jacket too and decided she wanted to match clothing styles. She discarded the orange pants that was originally paired with her tracksuit and wore the same blue pants that Hinata wore.

Hinata had prior warning to this period of growth but Natsumi had no idea what puberty even was, only knowing it was when their body changed from a child to an adult, which did not explain anything at all. Hinata had to introduce bras to Natsumi, an additional piece of undergarment exclusively for females. When Natsumi made a sour face at having to wear another piece of unwanted clothing, Hinata had to drive home the fact that it was a must for her own good. There was the alternate option of a mesh shirt which Natsumi wanted, but she ended up sulking in comical despair when Hinata told her it was even worse to wear it if she did not get used to wearing a bra first.

The shocker came in the fact that Natsumi was not prepared at all for her periods. Once again she had no idea what they were, only being told it was something all females had to go through. It did not help matters one bit when she only just found out about Natsumi's utter lack of knowledge about puberty by said blonde screaming in front of the entire class that she was bleeding to death by being assaulted in the nether regions when she was unaware. A heavily blushing Iruka immediately delegated the duty of explaining what was happening to her to Hinata.

Just in case, Hinata asked for whatever information Natsumi knew about feminine body care. She felt terrible for not realizing her best friend knew so very little. Determined to help her, she did her best to educate Natsumi on the subject. Hinata's face burned with embarrassment the entire time she had to properly explain just what puberty did to a female's body and how to care for it, including the naughty bits. She had never seen Natsumi go so pale before when she was told she would bleed from the nether regions and suffer cramps once a month for many, many years to come. She nearly burst out laughing but managed to turn it into unrestrained giggles when Natsumi got to her knees and hugged her midsection, begging with tears pooling in her eyelids for Hinata to 'save' her from the monthly tortures, which was impossible. It took a few days for the fact to fully sink in and for her to accept it was a part of nature.

As for the rest of the year until it was time for graduation, it was a tense wait for both best friends as that truly marked the starting point to their dreams... and the first step was to be a ninja.

*****Break Line*****

**Differences**

**The first meeting between Hinata and Naruto.**

**Canon - Hinata never gets to talk to Naruto and doesn't approach him again for the rest of their Academy years.**

**My version - My opinion of that scene is that Hinata hesitated a bit too long to catch Naruto's attention and was no longer able to bring up the courage to speak to him again. Here, she does not hesitate speak to Natsumi. My reasoning? They are both girls. Same gender. Boys find it easier to mix around with boys. Same goes for girls. It's a natural thing.**

**Natsumi is OOC for being a gender-bent Naruto.**

**Canon - Naruto doesn't have any close friends that really pays attention to him. Kiba, Chouji and Shikamaru are, at the time in the Academy, simply casual friends. Hinata never approaches him at all during that time.**

**My version - Remember, in this story, Hinata has already become friends with Natsumi. Hinata took the first step in wanting to be friends with her. For being a social outcast, this means an incredible lot for Natsumi. Hinata has already been inspired by and admires Naruto/Natsumi ever since her rescue and has never forgotten it. Natsumi already considers Hinata her best friend, and will do anything to keep that bond intact. Hinata empathizes with Naruto/Natsumi's harsh childhood, and so will do whatever she can to lessen that pain.**

**The absence of the aforementioned trio.**

**Canon - Read above.**

**My version - Natsumi already has Hinata. To Natsumi, Hinata is at the center of everything. With no family, Hinata is the next best thing. Simply by being her first and best friend, Natsumi pays the most attention to her. It's unmentioned, but they are civil with her, the same they do with Naruto.**

**Natsumi's hair troubles.**

**Canon - Naruto does not have any problems concerning his hair.**

**My version - Naruto has short, spiky hair. If it grows long, even a random cut job can make it back to what it looks like. Natsumi wants to grow long hair, so a random cut job will ruin it.**** As for the pigtails, Naruto uses a Henge for it, Natsumi doesn't. Naruto doesn't need to learn how to tie his hair. Natsumi has never tied her hair before, and Hinata teaches her how to.**

******Natsumi's hygiene troubles.**

******Canon - Naruto does not have any problems concerning his hygiene.**

******My version - Keeping a girl's hygiene clean is harder than a guy's. Concerning the undergarments, ****I used the thought that Natsumi uses boy's clothes simply because it's easier to imitate a boy's style. Anyone can imitate t-shirt and pants and look perfectly fine. A blouse and skirt? Definitely not.**

**Natsumi's home troubles.**

**Canon - Naruto does not have any problems concerning his home.**

**My version - ****Naruto could have learned through trial and error over the years how to maintain his home. Before Natsumi can learn through trial and error, Hinata has already given her help and taught her how to maintain her home's cleanliness.**

**Natsumi's puberty troubles.**

**Canon - Not mentioned.**

**My version - A boy doesn't need to do anything to adjust to puberty. A girl does, and needs a lot of adjusting. Being an orphan, just who is going teach Natsumi what to do when puberty comes by? Some might say the Academy instructors, but there isn't any confirmation whether the kunoichi classes actually go through puberty for girls. For all we know, it might just be boiled down to 'common sense' and expected for all kunoichi hopefuls to already know what to do.**

**Appearance.**

**Canon - Orange tracksuit and orange pants.**

**My version - Natsumi will be wearing Naruto's orange tracksuit but instead of the orange pants, she will be wearing Hinata's blue pants. Easy to picture, yes?**

*****Break Line*****

**That's all for now. Do kindly leave behind a review to let me know if I'm on the right track or you can leave behind suggestions so I work around with them if it fits with what I'm planning to do with this story.**


	2. Graduation Woes

Graduation was only a day away, and Natsumi was excited! What better way to show it than to paint the Hokage Monument? Thanks to her self-proclaimed genius ninja skills, she managed to finish her masterpiece of doing a makeover to the stone faces before being spotted performing the misdeed. She was chased down by furious Chuunin ninjas but thanks to her years as a prankster, she easily hid from them. Just as she was gloating about it, Iruka got the drop on her.

"HEY, NATSUMI!" he screamed right next to her ear, sending her screaming as she jumped away from him and landed unceremoniously on her bottom.

"What the hell are you doing, Iruka-sensei?" she grumbled.

"That's my line! What are _you_ doing during my class time?" Instead of answering, Natsumi attempted to flee only to be tied up in a lot of rope as she was dragged all the way back to the Academy and back to class. "Listen Natsumi," Iruka started to lecture the captive girl. "The graduation test is tomorrow. Is this the time for you to be fooling around like this?" His response was her turning her head away childishly with a huff. That ticked him off enough that he felt justified to take out his anger on the rest of the class by forcing everyone to perform a review of the Henge.

A foxy grin appeared on Natsumi's face as she prepared a perfect retaliation against Iruka. She was technically doing the Henge but she would transform into an adult version of herself, only naked with white smoke covering the important bits. The plan was quickly banished from her mind as quickly as it was formed though. She remembered the time when she showed it to Hinata as a demonstration. She explained it was something to utterly defeat perverts with but instead of being impressed, a look of horror was plastered on Hinata's face.

*****Flashback*****

"Natsumi-chan, why... Why would you do something like this?" Hinata had never heard herself sound so loud before. Had she shouted when she saw just what Natsumi had done?

"H-Hinata-chan...?" Natsumi quickly dispelled the Henge, in shock that Hinata of all people had shouted at her. "W-What is it? Was it that bad?"

"Please, don't do this ever again, Natsumi-chan!" Hinata went up to her and gripped her arms in desperation for her friend. Natsumi was stunned when she saw Hinata nearly in tears. She felt her own heart shatter into pieces because she knew that she was the cause of them. "Don't you understand that you might grow up to look just like that? You're a girl, Natsumi-chan. If you show yourself like that, you could get assaulted! You could get..." Hinata trailed off for a moment. "Just, please, don't do this anymore, Natsumi-chan." Tears were now falling freely from her face. "Please..."

"Don't cry, Hinata-chan. I'm... I'm sorry... I didn't mean to make you cry. Please forgive me..." Natsumi was trembling really hard as she tried to hold back tears of her own. The last thing she wanted to do was hurt Hinata or make her cry. She felt like the biggest piece of scum on the planet. She almost nearly agreed with the rest of the villagers that she was indeed trash to be hated. She made the sweetest and kindest person she had ever known cry. She made her best friend cry. Once the tears dried, Hinata did not blame her. She just said she had gotten so worried because Natsumi was about to make a mistake that could haunt her for the rest of her life.

*****End flashback*****

Since that time, Natsumi vowed she would never do anything, or let anything, make Hinata cry with sorrow like that again. With a solemn face, she obediently performed the Henge without causing any trouble. The abrupt shift in her demeanor caught Iruka off-guard as he passed her demonstration. He almost ended the review right there when he saw Hinata whispering words of comfort to her as she gently held her hand.

Immediately after class ended, Iruka dragged Natsumi over to the Hokage Monument to clean up her mischief. Until she was done cleaning every speck of paint, she would not be allowed to return home. She retorted that no-one was waiting for her back home anyway as she grudgingly continued cleaning. Knowing he used the wrong words to use, he made a flimsy apology by offering to treat her to ramen for dinner as he scratched his nose sheepishly. At the sound of that, Natsumi immediately brightened up and hastened her cleaning.

As promised, Iruka brought Natsumi to the Ichiraku ramen stand, her favorite place in the entire village. The Academy was also one of her favorite places to be in but for all the wrong reasons. To Iruka's utter dismay, the only reason she even liked that place was because Hinata was there. That was it. Iruka being there and her very small number of casual acquaintances were also part of that reason, but she mentioned it almost like an afterthought. Speaking of afterthoughts...

"Natsumi, why did you vandalize such a place?" Iruka asked. He never asked about her pranks but this one seemed to hold some significance. "You know who the Hokages are, right?"

"Of course I do," she answered, pausing to finish her bowl of ramen, broth and all. "The Hokages were the number one ninjas of the village. I heard the Fourth was a hero who protected the village from a monster fox."

"Then why did you...?"

"Because I'm going to receive that title one day and become greater than any of them! Then, I'm going to make everyone in the village acknowledge me!" she declared with complete confidence. "By the way, Sensei, I have a favor to ask."

"You want seconds?"

"No, I want to try on that Konoha hitai-ate. Please?" she clapped her hands together in a small pleading manner.

"You mean this?" Iruka adjusted his hitai-ate he wore on his forehead. A stylized leaf was engraved onto the metal plate. It was the mark of Konoha. "Not a chance. This is proof you have graduated from the Academy and that you're a certified ninja. You'll get yours tomorrow when you graduate." He laughed when she pouted and called him stingy before ordering a second bowl in petty revenge.

*****Break Line*****

"We will now start the graduation exam," Iruka announced to the class. "If your name is called, go to the classroom next door. The test subject will be the Bunshin."

Natsumi clutched her head in panic. It was the one jutsu she was terrible at. Why couldn't it be the Henge? She would ace that one for sure!

"Natsumi-chan, are you okay?" Hinata whispered to her worriedly. She too knew about her problems with that particular jutsu. She also happened to know the cause of it too. If she looked at her with her Byakugan active, Natsumi would shine like a beacon to her due to the sheer amount of chakra she had.

During the times they practiced together for the Bunshin, Hinata could see with her naked eyes visible chakra swirling around Natsumi as she prepared to do the Bunshin. She would always tell her it was too much and if chakra had turned visible, it was guaranteed to be a failure. Trusting Hinata's words but pushing on anyway, Natsumi learned the hard way that she was right.

"What do I do, Hinata-chan? I don't want to fail!" Natsumi half-whined half-pleaded to Hinata.

"Calm down. If you see chakra around you, stop and try again. Don't give up. And if it still doesn't work, then make as many Bunshin as you can. I'm sure some of them will turn out correct," she gave some tips to maximize Natsumi's chances of graduating with her.

"That's why I really like you, Hinata-chan!" Natsumi scooted closer to Hinata and hugged her, rubbing her cheek with her own affectionately. Hinata involuntarily turned red but giggled nonetheless. It was Natsumi's way to show just how much she liked her. Hinata learned a long time ago that Natsumi did this whenever she felt Hinata had done something big for her. She found it endearingly cute though it was always embarrassing since Natsumi did not care if people saw them or not.

"If Natsumi would stop harassing Hinata, we can get this thing started," Iruka called them out. He chuckled silently as Hinata's face turned increasingly red and Natsumi shot him a grouchy look at his interruption.

*****Break Line*****

It was finally Natsumi's turn. As she glared with fierce determination at Iruka and Mizuki, his assistant for the graduation exam, she put her hands into the seal to focus her chakra and closed her eyes to block out any visual distractions. When she felt wind whipping around her, she snapped her eyes open to see chakra swirling around her.

"Shit!" she cursed and stopped focusing, causing her chakra to recede. _'Calm down, Uzumaki Natsumi! Remember what Hinata-chan said! Relax and try again. I need to use less chakra!' _she mentally spurred herself on. Taking a few deep breaths to calm herself, she tried again, and again. And again.

"We don't have all day, Natsumi! Are you going to show us your Bunshin or not?" Iruka asked impatiently.

"Ah, screw it!" Deciding there was no time to keep retrying, she used as little chakra as she could control to make as many Bunshin as she could. **"Bunshin no Jutsu!" **she called out the name of the jutsu. A huge burst of smoke erupted from her and when it cleared, there were about 50 clones, most of them looking ridiculous. However, three of them were perfect if a little discolored. "Yeah!" Natsumi cheered. Hinata's advice really did work!

"Pass/Fail!" both instructors called out at the same time, Iruka the former. They looked at each other with confused looks at the opposing decisions. Natsumi's cheering stopped when she heard them.

"Mizuki-sensei?" Iruka questioned his assistant.

"Iruka-sensei, her movements and stamina are good, but if she has to make this mass of unusable Bunshin just to create a few proper ones, it would not be appropriate no matter what the situation," Mizuki explained. "I understand that everyone else has at least produced three perfect Bunshin. But with this many failures just for that three correct ones..."

"Hmm..." Iruka had to admit that Mizuki was right. Although Natsumi technically did make three proper Bunshin, the rest would be a major bother. His own judgement depended on if she could do it or not with no deeper meaning behind his conclusion. But as Mizuki had pointed out, it was perhaps a little too much to simply let it slide. After a bit of thought, he came to a decision. "This attempt will be overlooked. Natsumi, do it again."

"What? Why?" Natsumi demanded furiously. "I passed, didn't I? I heard what you said! Everyone else got three, so did I! Look!" she pointed to the three passable Bunshin. "Why do I have to do it again?"

"If I passed you with this, you'd only be creating trouble! Stop arguing with me and do it again! And no more stalling!" Iruka snapped. Seeing her grudgingly obey and dispelling all the Bunshin, he allowed her another try. "I want you to make seven Bunshin. If three of them are passable, then you pass."

**"Bunshin no Jutsu!" **Natsumi performed it again and the result this time was obvious to all. Only one was standing while the rest flopped to the ground like they had no bone structure. Even the one standing was completely white like someone had just dunked Natsumi completely in white paint.

"You fail."

*****Break Line*****

Hinata wanted to cry for her best friend. Natsumi was the only one who failed. Her guardian Kou was with her, so she could not go to her. Natsumi was sitting down at the swing with a broken look on her face. Hinata stared despairingly at her own hitai-ate she tied around her neck. If she had her way, she would have returned it to Iruka and stay behind another year with Natsumi. But alas, due to her clan name, she could not do such a thing. Her father was disappointed in her enough as it was. She could not afford to sully the Hyuuga name. Just before she was led away, she saw Mizuki discussing something with Natsumi.

Along the way back to her home, Hinata could almost feel herself regressing back to the time Natsumi was not around for her. If Natsumi was not a ninja with her, who would she look to for courage? Who could she draw strength from? Who would encourage her to do her best? Who would encourage her to keep fighting for her dreams? She already knew the answer to all those questions: No-one. Even if there was, she did not think it would be the same. It was selfish of her to think in this manner, but she could not help it. She only wanted Natsumi with her. She did not want anyone else taking her place.

"Natsumi-chan..." Hinata whimpered like she was her eight-year-old self all over again as tears dripped from her eyes.

_'Hinata-sama... Does the presence of that child affect you that much?' _Kou watched his ward discreetly from the corner of his eyes as she wept silently. His mood sunk like a rock as Hinata dragged her feet as they returned to the compound. It was only when they arrived that she dried her tears and acted like nothing was wrong as best as she could. Kou knew better, and he felt disheartened that Hinata would trust her honest feelings to her friend rather than her own family.

*****Later that night*****

Natsumi panted heavily as she rested at the designated location Mizuki told her about in one of the forests in the village. So far so good! She was acing this substitute graduation exam! All that was left was to learn a jutsu from the Scroll of Seals and show it to whichever teacher managed to find her and she would pass! Unfolding the scroll to see what the first jutsu she would learn first, it turned out to be the Tajuu Kage Bunshin. Natsumi groaned in frustration as her lucky roll came to a halt. She was tempted to skip to another jutsu but convinced herself that if she could not even do this jutsu, she had no right to move on to other most likely more difficult jutsu. She was all worn out by the time she managed to properly perform the jutsu. While taking a short breather, a shadow loomed over her. Looking up, she saw it was Iruka.

Iruka was about to erupt with anger when he saw how dirty and ragged Natsumi was. He listened as she bragged about how if she showed him a jutsu from the Scroll of Seals, he would allow her to graduate. Knowing nothing like that was in the Academy rules, he asked who told her such a thing. He was shocked when Mizuki was the one who told her such nonsense. Suddenly, his instincts warned him of an approaching attack. He quickly shoved Natsumi away and took several kunais in her place.

Mizuki expressed slight surprise that Iruka had been able to find the hidden location while Iruka just realized that Mizuki had tricked Natsumi into doing a crime for him. Natsumi looked between the two of them wildly, unsure of what was going on. Mizuki told her to hand the scroll over to him while Iruka told her not to even at the cost of her life as it contained forbidden jutsu within. He revealed that she was just being used for him to get a hold of it. Natsumi immediately went on high alert as she stared at Mizuki suspiciously. Mizuki played his suspicion off by saying Iruka was just scared of her possessing the scroll. Not knowing what was truth, she turned to Iruka for confirmation. Iruka demanded that Mizuki explain what he was trying to say and told her not to believe a word he said.

"I'll tell you the truth," Mizuki said.

"Idiot, stop!" Iruka was suddenly very panicked, causing Natsumi to get even more suspicious of him unnecessarily.

"A rule that was created after the incident 12 years ago," Mizuki continued on, ignoring Iruka's pleas. "A rule that you, Natsumi, were never meant to find out."

"Only me? What is that rule?" Natsumi asked desperately.

"It's the rule not to say that Natsumi is a monster fox."

"Huh?"

"In other words, you are the Kyuubi no Youko that killed Iruka's parents and destroyed the village. You've been deceived by the villagers all this time. Didn't you think it was weird for everyone to hate you so much? No-one's ever going to acknowledge you! Even Iruka hates you!" He watched with gleeful malice as Natsumi flared her chakra wildly as her emotions were in chaos. Taking advantage of her distress, he threw a gigantic shuriken meant to bifurcate her in half. That plan was foiled by Iruka protecting her using himself as a human shield.

"W-Why...?" Natsumi murmured out at Iruka.

"Because you're the same as me," he replied, trying his best to ignore the sheer pain to his spine where the shuriken had lodged itself. He revealed that after his parents died, no-one paid any attention to him. Being the bad student that he was, he screwed up a lot in class because he wanted everyone's attention. He failed to get any being a good student that he actually was, so he acted like an idiot. "It was tough... Right, Natsumi? You were lonely, right?" Iruka was freely shedding tears now as he could connect to Natsumi's painful upbringing. "But you have Hinata now. She saved you from that pain since the time you two became best friends. She acknowledged you. She has never hated you. I can't say the same for myself. It took me too long to be aware of you. For that, I'm sorry."

"Don't make me laugh!" Mizuki interrupted the touching moment between teacher and student with his mocking laughter. "Iruka has always hated you since you killed his parents! He just wants to take that scroll back."

That spurred Natsumi into action as she ran away from the both of them. Running as far as she could before having to stop and hide, she paused as she overheard the two teachers talking just in front of the tree she was hiding behind.

"What good is there in protecting the murderer of your parents?" she heard Mizuki ask.

"I'm not letting an idiot like you get that scroll," Iruka replied, not answering the question.

"You're the idiot. Natsumi is the same as me."

"The same as you?"

"Anything is possible with that scroll. There's no way that Natsumi, the monster fox, won't use its powers."

"Yeah, you're right." Natsumi was shocked that Iruka agreed. She had believed Iruka acknowledged her! How could he! _"If_ she was a monster fox." She quickly retracted her thoughts as she listened more. "But Natsumi is different. She's an excellent student that I acknowledge. She's hardworking and earnest but clumsy. She knows the pain of others. Just look at what she has done for Hinata. I'm ashamed to admit it, but Hinata was the first, and the only one, to ever acknowledge Natsumi as her own person, long before I even did. She's no monster fox. She's Uzumaki Natsumi of Konoha!" Natsumi was in tears at the end of the touching speech. When she heard Mizuki threaten to kill both Iruka and Hinata, Natsumi knew it was no longer time for tears, but action. Springing an ambush, she nailed a perfect knee to Mizuki's chin, knocking him back and sending his weapon sailing off course.

"Don't you dare lay a finger on Iruka-sensei or Hinata-chan! I'll kill you if you do!" Natsumi snarled.

"Talk while you can. I'll finish a kid like you in a flash," Mizuki was not phased by the threat.

"You can try, jerk. I'll return a thousand times more damage back to you," she said as she positioned her fingers into the seal for her latest jutsu.

"Why don't you try it, monster fox!"

Iruka recognized the seal for the Kage Bunshin and right before his eyes, close to a hundred Kage Bunshin came into existence. They all taunted Mizuki to attack them but if he was not coming, then they would. Then came the beat down of a lifetime for Mizuki that lasted hours until the sun rose. Mizuki was left black and blue all over as Natsumi scratched the back of her head sheepishly as she wondered if she went a bit too far. Iruka looked at her in a new light as she asked if he was alright. This time, he really did believe that Natsumi just might be able to surpass all the previous Hokages.

"Natsumi, come here for a second. I want to give you something," Iruka called her over. "Close your eyes. This is a surprise." Natsumi flinched when she felt his arms go around her neck before something settled around it. "Okay, now you can open them." She opened her eyes and saw Iruka missing his hitai-ate. "Congratulations. You graduate," Iruka beamed proudly at her. Stunned in silence, she moved her gaze down and saw his hitai-ate around her neck. He knew how defensive she was about her hair so he did not tie it around her forehead. "All right, let's celebrate. I'll treat you to ramen!" He was taken aback when she dived towards him with a hug, inadvertently slamming his injured back to the trunk of the tree he was resting against.

Iruka may not have been the best role model for Natsumi, but he was extremely proud of her. He had ultimately failed her in the name of fair judgement but he was trying to look out for her safety unlike Mizuki who wanted her to fail for his evil plots. At the end of the day though, he reversed his own decision to allow Natsumi to pursue her lifelong dream of being Hokage. All that was left for him was to watch her grow into the ninja she aspired to be.

*****Break Line*****

**Differences**

**The Oiroke no Jutsu.**

**Canon - Naruto uses it to prank Iruka during the Henge review.**

**My version - I had Natsumi show off the Oiroke no Jutsu to Hinata as I believe even Naruto would show off a new jutsu to impress a best friend. But, since Natsumi and Hinata are both girls and the latter more aware of certain things, Hinata is horrified that Natsumi would do such a degrading thing even for a prank. Showing herself like that might tempt unnecessary attention of the worst kind especially since she is already a female, hence Hinata's outburst.**

**The graduation exam.**

**Canon - Iruka fails Naruto for producing a single crappy Bunshin. Mizuki tries to convince him otherwise but Iruka would not allow Naruto to pass. It is also Naruto's third attempt at passing.**

**My version - Natsumi gets advice from Hinata on help with the Bunshin and while she does give valuable advice, it almost allows Natsumi to pass if not for Mizuki's decision to fail her with convincing words to Iruka. This is Natsumi's first attempt as she has no reason to want to pass early due to Hinata's presence.**

**The theft of the Scroll of Seals.**

**Canon - Iruka admits he should have helped Naruto sooner instead of waiting so long as he can identify with the pain of being an orphan.**

**My version - The same as canon, but Iruka gives most of the credit to Hinata as he knows Natsumi's pain was greatly relieved thanks to her.**

**Extra Scene with Hinata - Just a little original piece, showing the emotional stress Hinata undergoes when she fears that Natsumi will be separated from her as she will be serving as a ninja while Natsumi will be stuck for another year at the Academy.**

*****Break Line*****

**It's basically Episode One but there are plenty of differences. From the reviews so far, I feel I am keeping on track and doing a good job. So thanks a lot, you guys! I hope I do not let you down with future chapters!**


	3. Truth Of The Graduation

Natsumi waited almost impatiently at the swing in the Academy grounds for Hinata. Graduates were required to fill out a Ninja Registration Form and get their photograph taken there, so she knew they would meet there if she arrived early. She was anxious to tell Hinata the good news that she had graduated too. Waiting with patience was apparently not something she was good at, so she ended up dozing off.

"...chan? Natsumi-chan? Wake up," someone shook her gently as they called her name. Groggily lifting her head from its slumped position, her blurry vision soon cleared to show Hinata looking at her worriedly. "Are you okay? Why are you sleeping here?" she asked once she got her attention.

"Good morning, Hinata-chan..." Natsumi greeted, stifling a huge yawn. "I was waiting for you..."

"Waiting for me? Is there something you wanted to tell me?"

"Tell you... Oh yeah!" Natsumi perked up as she hopped off the swing. "I graduated, Hinata-chan!"

"You... You did?" Hinata muttered in disbelief.

"Of course! As if the great Uzumaki Natsumi will give up on being a ninja!" she bragged as she puffed out her chest proudly.

"I'm so glad...!" Hinata gave her a big hug as her eyes teared up with joy. "I thought I was going to be alone as a ninja..."

"There, there," Natsumi patted her back soothingly. "You know I won't abandon you. That's a promise, and I never go back on my word!"

"Because that's my ninja way," Hinata said together with her. She broke the hug and giggled as she wiped her eyes with her sleeve.

"That's right! That's _our_ ninja way! Now let's go and let the entire village know about us!" Natsumi let the way towards the Academy building.

*****Break Line*****

After they had their photographs taken, Natsumi was frowning at both their photographs. Natsumi's photograph had her simply giving a big, wide grin. She was dissatisfied as she felt she could have done something more with it, maybe face paint and a pose. She felt her photograph was just too normal, not 'Uzumaki Natsumi' enough. Hinata's photograph was even worse to her eyes and true to her self, she made it known vocally to her.

"What's this, Hinata-chan? This doesn't look good at all!" Natsumi complained when she saw Hinata's photograph.

"It's no good?" Hinata frowned, poking her index fingers together. It looked fine to her, but maybe because she was not too particularly concerned with how it turned out.

"Of course not! I understand you're shy, but what is this posture? Have more confidence in yourself! Show everyone else that you're not someone people should mess with!" The image in both their minds were utterly different when she said that, though. Natsumi imagined Hinata standing over a pile of beaten enemies and laughing boisterously in victory, which the real Hinata would never do. Hinata had a much more modest image of Natsumi giving her a hug and the affectionate cheek rub as she successfully defeated an enemy, which the real Natsumi would likely do. "Let's take another picture!"

"A little too late there. I've already handed the photograph to Hokage-sama," the cameraman told them.

"No way!" Natsumi exclaimed. "We haven't even decided if it was okay or not!"

"It's alright, Natsumi-chan. It's just a picture," Hinata calmed her down, giggling at her pouting face.

"Then, then, can we take another picture for ourselves?" Natsumi asked the cameraman.

"Sure, but you'll be paying out of your own pockets for this," he replied, having only gotten payment from the Hokage to take the photographs of all the ninja graduates.

"No problem! Make it two, for each of us!"

"Alright, then take your pose." He did not have to wait long as Natsumi slung her arm over Hinata's shoulders. The camera flashed twice, indicating two shots. "Now this is a good shot. Looking good, both of you," he appraised the developed photographs. When he handed them over, both girls smiled brightly. Natsumi had pulled Hinata in for a hug, pressing her cheek against Hinata's own. She was winking at the camera with a victory sign in her free hand and a huge grin on her face. Hinata did not do any big movements, but there was a sparkle in her eyes. She was blushing lightly with a very happy smile on her face. It was a lot better than the reluctant smile on her original photograph.

*****Break Line*****

Natsumi smiled without a care in her seat while Hinata fidgeted uncomfortably in her own as Hiruzen inspected their Ninja Registration Forms. There were no problems to be found though Natsumi was constantly whining about how she wanted to look cooler in her photograph. Suddenly, the door to the room slammed open and a young boy rushed in wielding a shuriken in his hand and shouting that the title of the Fifth Hokage belonged to him, Konohamaru. All that tension immediately dissipated when he tripped on his own two feet and slammed his face flat on the floor. As he covered his face in pain, a ninja dressed in casual clothes and wearing round sunglasses came in and looked around in slight confusion.

"Are you alright, omago-sama?" he asked.

"Is this a trap?" Konohamaru exclaimed.

"Who is this kid?" Natsumi leaned in to whisper to Hinata who shook her head, showing she did not know either. Apparently her voice was not low enough as everyone heard her.

_'This kid is...!' _the ninja recognized Natsumi. _'The Kyuubi brat. It's the dropout I really hate.'_

"I got it. You two did something, didn't you?" Konohamaru got right in both girls' faces and pointed accusingly at them. A tick mark appeared on Natsumi's forehead at the baseless accusation.

"You just tripped on your own!" she snapped at him as she grabbed a fistful of his very long scarf threateningly.

"Hey! Let go of him! He is the grandson of the great Third Hokage-sama!" the ninja exclaimed.

"What's the matter? Why don't you hit me if you can!" Konohamaru taunted when Natsumi paused to absorb that information. "You're no match for the grandson of a Hokage!"

"Like I care about that, you idiot!" she delivered a punch to the back of his head, knocking him down.

"Natsumi-chan!" Hinata exclaimed, appalled that her best friend would actually hit him. She turned to the Hokage with a fearful expression but it was quickly replaced with confusion when he did not seem offended at all. She watched as the ninja helped Konohamaru to his feet and lectured him about his status as the grandson of the Hokage and could not associate himself with someone like Natsumi as no good would come out of dealing with her. In that very same breath, he encouraged him to associate with Hinata more as she was of similar status like him and might learn something from her. He sealed the deal by claiming that he, Ebisu the elite teacher, was never wrong and that the quickest path to becoming the Fifth Hokage was through his teachings. A huge frown appeared on her face as she wanted to defend Natsumi. Whatever courage she had to speak her mind was drained when she saw the hurt look on Natsumi's face as she quietly left the room. She chose to accompany her in order to brighten up the mood.

*****Break Line*****

As they wondered through the village, Hinata saw firsthand the cold looks the villagers gave Natsumi who pointedly ignored them. Throughout the years, she had constantly heard about the large amount of hate aimed towards Natsumi but never saw for herself exactly how bad it was until now. During their Academy years, the two of them had never walked with each other through the village, not even once. Kou would always be there to escort her home when the Academy ended. Even when she joined Natsumi in training sessions, they had never gone through the village. She hid her shock when she heard whispers about why she, a main house Hyuuga, was hanging out with that 'thing'. They did not even bother referring to Natsumi as a person. That struck a nerve in Natsumi as she whirled around with a scathing look to glare at the person who said that.

"As if any of you losers know anything about Hinata-chan and me! You wanna talk trash about me, fine! See if I care! But don't you dare talk bad about Hinata-chan!" she yelled. She grabbed Hinata's hand and angrily marched away from the harsh whispers she could clearly hear directed towards her. She led them to a quiet place in the park where the both of them could relax and for her to cool her head.

"Why do they dislike you so much, Natsumi-chan? Do you know why?" Hinata asked, curious about it but also wanting to help her best friend. "Whenever I ask anyone, they always avoid the subject." She was surprised when Natsumi visibly stiffened. "Natsumi-chan?"

"They're right about one thing. It's not something you should know," Natsumi replied with a weak smile in an attempt to placate Hinata but grew silent in shame when her eyes showed nothing but hurt at her refusal to answer her question.

"Please, Natsumi-chan. You know something. Please tell me." Hinata hated that plastic smile on Natsumi's face. She had seen it far too many times during their Academy years. It was a clear indication that Natsumi was feeling hurt and refused to show anyone, not even Hinata herself, her true feelings.

"I'm sorry. I really can't tell you," Natsumi averted her eyes from Hinata. By doing so, she failed to see a look of comprehension that appeared on her face.

"Does it have something to do with the nine-tailed fox?" Hinata hazarded a wild guess. It was true that she had asked many times over the years why her clan members constantly told her to avoid interacting with Natsumi. They always told her to forget about it or they would change the subject immediately. Those were the answers she got each and every time. She almost forgot as it was years ago but she vaguely recalled her guardian Kou mentioning the Kyuubi. When she had asked, he told her the same thing everyone else said and that was to forget about it. That was the only thing different from all the monotonous answers.

"H-Hinata-chan... Why... Why do you know that...?" Hinata could not hold back her gasp when Natsumi turned to look her. Her face was full of fear and she had turned extremely pale. She had all but confirmed the Kyuubi was involved in the villager's hatred for her. "I didn't want you to know... Not you... Especially not you, Hinata-chan..."

"Natsumi-chan, I-"

"I'm sorry! I'm sorry! I'm sorry!" Natsumi apologized desperately as she bolted from the park.

"Natsumi-chan, wait!" Hinata called for her friend, shocked that she would actually run away from her. She gave chase but quickly lost sight of her. She wanted to use her Byakugan to locate her but knowing Natsumi, she would still find a way to hide from her if she did not want to be found. Downtrodden at seeing Natsumi so desperate to get away from her, Hinata resolved to get to the heart of the matter and lend her aid should she ever need it.

*****Break Line*****

Hinata waited at Natsumi's apartment until late afternoon. Natsumi had given her a spare key as a sign of unbreakable trust in her but she did not enter as a sign of courtesy. When Natsumi saw her waiting outside, she almost fled again but was stopped when Hinata grabbed her hand.

"Can we talk inside, please?" Hinata pleaded with Natsumi who could never turn down a request from her best friend. She nodded reluctantly and both girls settled in the living room in uncomfortable silence. "Where did you go?" Hinata attempted to break the ice.

"I met Konohamaru along the way. He wanted to be my underling or something like that. So as a present, I thought him how to do the Henge. He told about his dream to become Hokage, but I told him he had to beat me to do that. Then he quit being my underling and called me his rival," Natsumi had forgotten about the dark mood surrounding them as she got excited telling her afternoon tale.

"That's great, Natsumi-chan," Hinata smiled for her friend but it quickly dimmed when she remembered what she was here for. "Natsumi-chan, will you tell me what the connection between the Kyuubi and you is?"

"You know the story about how the Yondaime defeated the monster fox, right?" Natsumi relented to Hinata's pleading. At her nod, she took a deep breath to drop the bomber. "Long story short, he didn't kill it. He had to seal it to defeat it, and the seal is me. That's why all the villagers hate me. They think I'm the monster fox."

"Oh." That was all Hinata said. She looked surprised, but nothing beyond that.

"'Oh'? That's all you can say? Are you making fun of me?" Natsumi snapped, slamming her hands on the table as she stood up and startling Hinata. "I never should have told you anything about this! I-" She was interrupted by a hug from Hinata.

"It's alright, Natsumi-chan. I understand why you're scared. This doesn't change anything between us. You don't have to be scared of losing our friendship. I'll always be there for you, and that's a promise. And I never go back on my word, for that is our ninja way. Thank you for sharing this huge secret with me."

"Thanks... Thanks so much, Hinata-chan..." Natsumi thanked her from the bottom of her heart.

"...My family has seals too," Hinata revealed a secret about her family when they separated.

"Eh?" Natsumi was surprised at the sudden revelation. She stayed silent as Hinata explained about the cursed seal the Hyuuga clan possessed. Although most of the descriptive stuff went in one ear and out the other, she got the gist of it. It was a horrible seal that only served to enslave the branch house Hyuuga members. "Why are you telling me this? Isn't this a clan secret?" Natsumi asked once she was done explaining about it.

"I can't be the only one keeping my best friend's secret, can I?" Hinata giggled, causing her to laugh.

"You're right about that!"

*****A few days later*****

"Why are you here, Natsumi? Today's explanatory meeting is only for those who graduated," Shikamaru asked when he saw Natsumi chatting animatedly with Hinata just as he arrived in the classroom where said meeting would take place soon.

"Hey, can you not see this hitai-ate?" Natsumi showed him her hitai-ate tied around her neck. "Starting today, I'm also a ninja!" Shikamaru made a sound of approval before finding his seat next to Chouji. Sakura and Ino just arrived and already they were clamoring for the empty seat next to Sasuke. Their argument quickly involved almost all the other girls as well. Almost all, meaning only Natsumi and Hinata could not be bothered with trying to grab the coveted seat next to Sasuke.

"What's so good about Sasuke anyway? All I see is some stuck-up jerk," Natsumi said to Hinata. Her comment voice was heard by the arguing mass of girls and Sasuke himself. They all turned to face her, but she ignored her fellow classmates in favor of exchanging glares with him. One could almost swear lightning was sparking between their eyes. They did not break their glares until Iruka arrived to start the explanatory meeting.

"Starting today, you are all official ninjas but you are all still new Genins. It's going to get harder from here. You are all going to be placed in teams of three, where you will accomplish missions under a Jounin teacher," Iruka announced. That raised a small amount of chatter among the graduates as they discussed about being in a team of three. Just as Iruka predicted, most of the chatter was from the girls and who would be grouped with Sasuke. "We have arranged the teams such that overall abilities are equivalent. I will now announce them."

"As long as I'm on a team with Hinata-chan, I don't care who our partner is! Right, Hinata-chan?" Natsumi held very high hopes of being in a team with her best friend. In her mind, they were the perfect duo!

"R-Right..." Hinata gave a reluctant smile to the beaming Natsumi who did not notice anything wrong. She knew better. Her heartbeat had sped up tremendously when she heard the teams were to be roughly equivalent, and the two best friends were far from that. She did not doubt she and Natsumi would work flawlessly with each other and they would not ostracize whoever their partner would be if they were placed together, and that was a very big if. After Natsumi toiled to graduate, they were going to get separated again? Hinata could hardly think about it without getting panicked. She listened while giving a silent prayer to whatever gods were listening that they would not get separated. So far six teams had been announced, and neither of their names had been called.

"Team 7. Uzumaki Natsumi," Iruka announced. Both Hinata and Natsumi perked up. "Haruno Sakura." He glanced down at the name of the last person assigned to Team 7. He looked up and saw pleading looks in both Hinata's and Natsumi's face as their hands were clasped in a desperate plea. Unable to keep his gaze on them any longer, he gave them a heartfelt silent apology as he announced the last person. "And Uchiha Sasuke." He quickly sped through the last three teams, trying to crush the growing guilt he could feel building up in him even though he had no hand in selecting who was partnered with who.

"Iruka-sensei!" Natsumi voiced out her extreme dissatisfaction. "Why is a top student like me in a group with this guy?" she pointed to Sasuke.

"Sasuke graduated with the highest scores. And you, Natsumi, had the lowest," Iruka replied, causing most of the class to erupt into laughter. "This happens because we want to evenly divide abilities within the team."

"Don't hold me back," Sasuke spoke up, further angering an already agitated Natsumi.

"What did you say!"

"You want to fight, blockhead?"

"Blockhead? Why you...!"

"Calm down, Natsumi-chan. It can't be helped. The decision has been made," Hinata stopped the argument from turning into physicality even as the other graduates continued mocking Natsumi with their laughter.

"THIS IS RIDICULOUS!" Natsumi yelled as she slammed her fists into the table and sat down with a furious expression on her face. The laughter immediately ceased at how loud the resounding 'bang' was when she hit the table. Only Hinata's voice could be heard as she rubbed Natsumi's back gently as she tried to soothe her best friend.

"I'm going to introduce the Jounin teachers in the afternoon. Meeting adjourned until then!" Iruka dismissed his former students before the situation got any worse.

*****Break Line*****

"As usual, Natsumi's being the center of trouble," the Hokage commented as the gathered Jounin teachers observed the unsuspecting girl via his crystal ball.

"You seem worried, Hokage-sama. Is something the matter?" Kakashi saw the conflicted look on his leader's face.

"I can only hope that my separating the two of them will not destroy either from within," Hiruzen lamented.

"Hyuuga Hinata and Uzumaki Natsumi, I presume?"

"If I were able, I would have not separated them in good conscience. It's a shame their abilities and their grades are too far apart for that to be a possibility."

"Why is that, if I might be so bold to ask?" Kurenai asked. "If they were to be together, it could be misinterpreted as favoritism."

"A report from Iruka stated Hinata nearly suffered an emotional breakdown when she sought advice from him the day after the graduation exams but before the graduates were required to fill out their Registration Forms. She wanted to consider returning her hitai-ate so she could stay with Natsumi. When he refused to even entertain her train of thought, she broke down and begged him to do something, anything, so she could stay by her side. I fear this time, one, or god forbid both of them, might collapse from the absence of the another," Hiruzen sighed.

*****Break Line*****

"Kiba, got a second?" Natsumi went to find Inuzuka Kiba, Hinata's teammate.

"What's up?" he asked, a little put off by how serious Natsumi's face was.

"It's about our teams."

"I get it. It's about Hinata, isn't it?"

"Yeah. I've got a really serious question to ask you."

"Shoot."

"If Akamaru is to be separated from you and you can't say no without being thrown into jail for insubordination, what will you do?"

"That will never happen! All the ninjas know the Inuzukas never part with our nin-ken!" Kiba laughed, causing Natsumi to scratch her head in frustration.

"Ugh, damn it Kiba! Fine! In a mission, then! You and Akamaru are separated and can't get back together! What then?"

"If anyone managed to do that, I'd have no choice but to trust Akamaru to my teammate's care. It's not that I don't trust them since Akamaru can take care of himself if needed to, but I can't trust them. I'll trust my teammate, I really will, but I really can't bring myself to trust anyone with Akamaru... except for my clan members. Them, I'll make an exception."

"I see. Thanks for telling me, Kiba," Natsumi thanked him and returned to the classroom.

*****Break Line*****

When afternoon arrived, nine Jounin ninjas had arrived in the classroom as Iruka paired a team up with one of them. When it was Team 7's turn, he mentioned their teacher would come later. When it was Team 8's turn to be paired up, Hinata was constantly looking over her shoulder at Natsumi, her eyes full of despair and longing as she slowly made her way to the Jounin which happened to be the only female Jounin there.

"Hinata-chan..." Natsumi murmured her name as her hand stretched towards her like it had a mind of its own. Hinata saw the gesture and stretched her own hand back as if refusing to go but was pulled away. Seeing it like it was a plea for help, Natsumi decided she had to help Hinata in some way. "Wait!" she called out when Team 8 was about to leave. Iruka, the remaining students and Jounins watched her curiously as she made her way towards Team 8.

"Natsumi-chan?" Hinata was a little worried about what she might do. She did not want to leave without her best friend, but refusing to go would tarnish her clan's name and she would be punished severely for insubordination.

"Kiba, remember what I asked earlier at lunch?" Natsumi asked, her eyes being shadowed by her bangs.

"Yeah. What about it?" he replied, though he already knew what it was about.

"It's the same thing with Hinata-chan and me. I know you have a Jounin teacher and I know Hinata-chan can take care of herself, but I can't trust any of you. I can't do it," she told them.

"Yeah, I can't trust you with Akamaru either," he chuckled. If anyone in Team 8 was offended at Natsumi's mistrust of them, they did not show it.

"But I have to. We've got no choice but to be on separate teams. I don't know why, but it's really hurting me inside to accept it. I can't stop this from happening, but I can say this. If you _ever_ make Hinata-chan cry... If you _ever _let her get hurt so badly she can't even stand..." Natsumi raised her head just enough so Team 8 could see her eyes... and it was not the bright blue eyes everyone associated her with. The members of Team 8 froze at the _red _slit eyes she was glaring with, and they were full of hate. **"I'll beat the living crap out of _all _of you!" **she growled out that last sentence.

Only Hinata understood why Natsumi was so full of rage and while not a single drop of it was directed towards her, she still felt her sense of danger screaming and warning her to get as far away as she could from her. Though it was brief, Iruka and the Jounins were suddenly on full alert as their wide eyes were trained on Natsumi. They recognized that killer intent anywhere and feared Natsumi would lose control and attack everyone around her. Fortunately, after delivering her threat, she turned and stomped her way back to her seat, her eyes back to normal. All the students were unaware of what happened, having only seen the adults snap their wide-eyed gazes towards her.

_'This is bad... Hokage-sama was right when he feared separating the two girls could have severe consequences,' _Kurenai thought as she tried not to hurry out of the building.

*****Break Line*****

The Jounin teacher for Team 7 only arrived two hours after everyone else had left and his first impression of them was he hated them. Rather than being affected by the depressive aura her other two teammates emitted, Natsumi only clicked her tongue in annoyance. She was no longer boiling with anger towards the situation but she was far from being calm or in her usual attitude. They headed towards the roof where their teacher introduced himself as Hatake Kakashi. He had no intention of telling them his likes or dislikes. His dream was left unsaid and he had a few hobbies. He then looked pointedly towards Natsumi as it was her turn to do her introduction.

"I'm Uzumaki Natsumi. I like ramen of all sorts, especially Ichiraku ramen. I also like Hinata-chan's homemade lunches. My favorite person in the world is Hyuuga Hinata-chan. I hate the three minutes you have to wait for cup ramen to boil after adding hot water. I also hate anyone who hurts Hinata-chan. My hobby is to spend as much time as possible with Hinata-chan. And my dream is to become a Hokage greater than all of the previous ones. I'm going to make all the villagers acknowledge my existence." She did it with less heart than she normally would, still affected by the recent separation with Hinata.

_'I see. She grew up in an interesting way. And with a lot of aid from Hinata,' _Kakashi noted mentally. "Okay, next."

"I'm Haruno Sakura! I like... Well, the person I like is..." she trailed off as she sneaked Sasuke a few glances. "And my hobby is... My dream is to..." Instead of completing any of her sentences, she only squealed in delight.

"And? What do you hate?" Kakashi prompted.

"Natsumi," she answered immediately with no remorse.

"What the hell!" Natsumi snapped. "What did I do to you to make you hate me?"

"You're always trying to pick a fight with Sasuke-kun! You're never going to win, so stop bothering him!" Sakura shouted back.

"That's all it takes for you to hate someone? Someone bothering Sasuke? Then I'm pretty sure you hate all the other girls in class, even Ino. I didn't know you were that ungrateful to her for being your friend. Breaking your friendship over something as stupid as him?" she pointed to Sasuke accusingly.

"Hey! Don't call Sasuke-kun stupid!"

"Forget it. I'm through talking with you," Natsumi sulked and returned to looking all grouchy at Kakashi.

"Last guy," he turned to Sasuke without missing a beat even as he took mental notes on his Genins. _'Girls her age must be more interested in love than training. Well, most girls at least. Still, for Natsumi to take offense to Sakura breaking off a friendship... It only reinforces the fact how vital Hinata's presence is to Natsumi.'_

"My name is Uchiha Sasuke. There are many things I hate, and not many things I like," Sasuke imitated Kakashi's own introduction to a small degree. "Also, I have an ambition that I have no intention to leave as just a dream. The revival of my clan and to kill a certain man." An awkward silence descended down on the group. Natsumi wondered who Sasuke wanted to kill and guessed it was whoever killed his clan, while Sakura could only grasp the self-induced thought that Sasuke was cool. Kakashi had expected such a response from the Uchiha.

"Alright, you three have unique personalities. I like that. We're going to begin a mission starting tomorrow," he told them.

"What kind of mission is that?" Natsumi asked, her interest perked.

"First, we're going to do something that we four can do."

"What is it?"

"Survival training."

"Why are we going to train when it's a mission?" Sakura asked. "We had plenty of training in the Academy."

"This is no ordinary training," Kakashi replied.

"Then what kind of training is it?" Natsumi asked, only to get laughter from her teacher.

"What is so funny, sensei?" Sakura looked a little offended at the laughter.

"Well, if I tell you, I'm sure you three are going to be surprised." Once he was sure he got their full attention, Kakashi's voice turned serious. "Out of the 27 graduates, only nine are to become Genins. The other 18 will be sent back to the Academy. In other words, this training is going to be a very hard test with a 66% failure rate." Just as he expected, the three of them were surprised in various ways. "See? You three are surprised!" His tone changed to a jovial one.

"No way! I went through so much trouble to pass that exam... What's the point of it then?" Natsumi complained.

"That? It just picks out those who are qualified to be Genin. I'm going to determine whether you pass or fail tomorrow at the training grounds. Bring your ninja equipment and meet at 5 AM!" Kakashi watched carefully at each of their reactions. Sakura was likely thinking about Sasuke just from her line of sight, Sasuke had gripped his hands together tighter whether to calm himself or rousing himself for the challenge, and Natsumi was just plain nervous... until she suddenly stopped shaking and looked like she was thinking hard. She looked towards the Academy for a second, got thinking again, before shaking her head furiously and tried to relax. That got Kakashi trying to figure out her thoughts. _'She's likely thinking about Hinata again. Judging from what she did, I suppose she considered the thought of purposely failing so she can get another chance at teaming up with Hinata next year before changing her mind. I can't tell if Hinata's a crutch she's been leaning on for far too long or a lifeline that keeps her going strong. Hokage-sama, you've made a huge gamble with those two. Either their bond will grow even stronger than before, or they will completely crumble to pieces without each other.'_

Leaving them to think about it, Kakashi bade them farewell and advised them not to eat breakfast or they would throw up. Tomorrow, he would see if his three charges were worthy to be among the nine who would be Genin.

*****Break Line*****

**Differences**

**The Ninja Registration Form photograph.**

**Canon: Naruto took three hours to paint himself and strike a pose as his photo.**

**My version: Natsumi went straight to the Academy as early as possible to wait for Hinata and tell her she passed. She did not want to waste time doing the aforementioned prank and miss Hinata. I also added a small extra scene where they took an extra photograph as a show of their friendship.**

**Ebisu and Konohamaru's appearance.**

**Canon: After Konohamaru gets punched for falsely accusing Naruto, Ebisu lectures him about the dangers of associating with Naruto.**

**My version: The punch is the same, but Ebisu lectures Konohamaru on not only the dangers of associating with Natsumi, but encourages him to do the exact opposite with Hinata. Basically, it's avoid Natsumi and hang around with Hinata.**

**Konohamaru's lesson with Naruto.**

**Canon: He tails Naruto and learns the Oiroke no Jutsu.**

**My version: I added an extra scene of Hinata finding out about the Kyuubi sealed in Natsumi. She did know about the Kyuubi due to Kou's accidental mention of it, and she's smart enough to know there's a connection. Once Natsumi runs off, the canon scene with Konohamaru occurs except he learns the Henge instead. Harem no Jutsu does not exist in this story, but Konohamaru can easily tell Ebisu not to attack Natsumi before a fight can break out. After that, Hinata finds out Kyuubi is sealed in Natsumi and does not hold it against her. She knows how seals work as she is surrounded with seal-bearing people when she's at home (the branch house Hyuuga).**

**The formation of the Genin teams.**

**Canon: Naruto only has a few complaints about being in Team 7.**

**My version: Natsumi has a boatload of complaints, not sticking together with Hinata being the biggest one. She speaks with Kiba on how to deal with separation when two individuals so closely connected to each other have to go separate ways. After getting her answer, she gets one final say about her opinion on the matter and awakens the Kyuubi's power from sheer frustration and the inability to do anything to keep herself and Hinata together.**

**The observation of Naruto through Hiruzen's crystal ball.**

**Canon: ****Hiruzen and the Jounins witness Naruto being dealt with harshly by a lot of girls in his class after the accidental kiss with Sasuke.**

******My version: ****Hiruzen is aware of the danger but takes the risk to separate Natsumi and Hinata. He does not feel good about it, but separates the two due to their different talents and the difference in their grades. He mentions Iruka's report, particularly to Kakashi and Kurenai, of one instance of separation, and how badly it affected Hinata. As for the kiss, it doesn't happen because Natsumi has no reason to confront Sasuke up close as she doesn't care about how popular he is and would rather stay away in one corner with Hinata if she isn't trying to pick a fight with him.**

**********The introductions with Kakashi.**

**********Canon: Naruto obsesses with ramen, Sakura obsesses with Sasuke and hating Naruto, and Sasuke wanting to kill his brother. Kakashi takes mental notes of each of them.**

**********My version: Natsumi still obsesses with ramen but mentions Hinata with the same amount of obsession. When Sakura mentions hating Natsumi, she took offense to it instead of being depressed. Naruto wants Sakura's affection in canon so he gets depressed when she said she hated him. Natsumi has no such relation and is neutral to her, hence why she took offense at Sakura's statement of hating her. Due to her own friendship with Hinata, Natsumi is disgusted at the fact Sakura so easily broke off her friendship with Ino. No changes with Sasuke. Kakashi takes more interest in observing Natsumi due to the Hokage's comments about her friendship with Hinata and wonders about it.**

*************Break Line*****

**********And that's it for this chapter! I was disappointed in myself since I had so few reviews last chapter. I can't tell if I'm doing a decent job or not with this story if I have no reviews. So, I hope I will get more reviews this time and thanks to all of you who favorited/followed/reviewed this story!**


	4. Bell Test & Secret

Arriving at the training grounds at the ungodly morning hour, Natsumi met up with her potential teammates at 5 AM sharp. They all had the same thought that even though Kakashi was very late to pick them up yesterday, they did not want to risk coming late just in case he was punctual today. He did say it was a 'mission'. As sleepy as she was, she forced her tired brain to remember what she discussed with Hinata the day before. Apparently all potential teams had that one day to prepare for the Genin test and Natsumi really needed her advice.

*****Flashback*****

"This is the worst thing that could happen to us!" Natsumi clutched her head tightly in frustration while Hinata continued looking depressed as they waited for their orders at the Ichiraku ramen stand.

"Well, look at this way. At least you both are one step closer to your dreams. Just because you two are separated doesn't mean you will never be together again. I'm sure one day will come where your teams are assigned to the same mission," Teuchi advised as he placed their respective bowl of ramen in front of them. He grinned when the two girls looked at each other with realization.

"Why didn't we think of that? I feel so foolish now..." Hinata lamented. "I made my team worry about me needlessly..."

"At least that's better than blowing up and shouting at mine!" Natsumi laughed in a careless manner, though there was a slight blush of embarrassment on her cheeks.

"Eh?" Hinata exclaimed in surprise. "You got angry and shouted at your team? You can't do that, Natsumi-chan! You'll fail your Genin test if you continue like that!"

"I'll fail...?" Natsumi visibly paled. "T-Then what do I do? I don't want to fail and leave you alone!"

"What did your Jounin instructor tell you to do?"

"Kakashi-sensei said to be at the training grounds at 5 AM for survival training and not to eat breakfast otherwise we'll throw up."

"That's odd..." a puzzled look appeared on Hinata's face. "That means you won't be at full strength for the training."

"Wait, wait, wait. You mean Kakashi-sensei is purposely trying to fail us? By making us train when we're hungry?"

"I wouldn't say that but... Throwing up when you're hungry will make you sick, Natsumi-chan."

"She's right, you know. It's better to throw up food than nothing in your stomach at all. Trust us on this," Ayame supported Hinata's claim.

"Really? That bastard sensei..." Natsumi gritted her teeth angrily at the unveiled deception. "I'll make sure to pay him back for this...!"

"G-Good luck, Natsumi-chan," Hinata sweat-dropped at her outburst. "Most importantly, Natsumi-chan, please remember to work with your teammates."

"Huh? There's no way that's gonna happen! Sakura hates me and Sasuke's a total jerk who won't work with anyone!" she exclaimed.

"But if you don't, then there's no meaning into us being placed in teams. If we had been teamed together, you'll cooperate with me, won't you?"

"I'll definitely cooperate with you, Hinata-chan! There's no way you and I won't have teamwork! We're best friends!"

"You know what to do now, Natsumi-chan?"

"Eat breakfast and work with Sakura and Sasuke even if I don't like it. I got it," Natsumi nodded sagely. "You really are my savior, Hinata-chan! What will I ever do without you!"

"N-Natsumi-chan...!" Hinata exclaimed as Natsumi suddenly reached over for a hug and the cheek rub. Embarrassing as it was being seen like that by the Ichiraku father and daughter, Hinata soon giggled as Natsumi's happy mood quickly infected her. They finished up their ramen and went home with a renewed confidence for their respective tests.

*****End flashback*****

It took over five hours for Kakashi to finally arrive at the designated training grounds.

"YOU'RE LATE!" Both Natsumi and Sakura yelled at him. His excuse of a black cat crossing his path did nothing to cool their tempers. Coughing into his fist to excuse himself, he proceeded to start their survival training. Placing an alarm clock on a tree stump, he had it set for noon.

"Today's topic is to get one of these bells from me," Kakashi said as he showed them two bells tied to strings. "Whoever can't will have no lunch. I'm going to tie you there," he pointed to three upright logs, "and eat lunch in front of you." Two stomachs growled at the mention of the lost breakfast. The owner of the appeased stomach had a knowing smirk on her face. "It looks like one of you decided not to listen to me and eat breakfast anyway," he noted, and all eyes turned to Natsumi.

"I'm not falling for any more of your tricks, Kakashi-sensei!" Natsumi declared proudly before brazenly fishing out a small rice ball and eating it in front of everybody, causing Sakura's and Sasuke's stomach to growl again. "Hinata-chan told me that if I didn't eat, I wouldn't be able to do this survival training with full strength and I'll get sick if I throw up on an empty stomach. Now that I think of it, I _dare _you to make me throw up if you can!"

_'I should have guessed she would consult Hinata about this. Natsumi's trust in Hinata goes beyond following my instructions, even if I was trying to trick them,'_ Kakashi mentally noted as he gave no outward reaction. "I suppose I'll do something about that later."

"Sensei, why are there only two bells?" Sakura pointed out, getting back on track.

"Since there's only two, at least one will have to be tied to the log. That person will fail since he failed to complete the mission. That person will return to the Academy. It might be just one, or all three," he explained. "You can use your shurikens if you want. You won't be able to get this unless you have the will to kill me." Sakura exclaimed that it was dangerous but was swiftly ignored. Watching all three of them tense up, he started the survival training. All three hastily disappeared from his sight and hid among the forest surrounding the training grounds. Just as he was mentally praising their hiding skills...

"Let's have a match fair and square!" Natsumi was standing a distance away from Kakashi and issuing a direct challenge.

"Hey, aren't you a little weird compared to the rest?" Kakashi asked, exasperated at the foolish action.

"What's weird is how much you cover your face!" she replied before charging towards him. When she saw him slip a hand into his weapon pouch, she stopped and eyed him cautiously.

"Ninja tactics number one: taijutsu. I'll teach you that first," Kakashi said as he pulled out a book to read, utterly confusing Natsumi. "What's the matter? Come and get me."

"But why did you take out a book?" she asked.

"Why? I got curious as to how the story is going to develop. Don't worry about it. It won't make a difference either way." That provoked Natsumi enough to make her assault. Without even lifting his eyes from the pages, he blocked a wild punch and ducked under a jumping roundhouse kick effortlessly. As she came in for a third attack, he speedily moved behind her and had a hand seal ready. "A ninja should not let the enemy get behind her, idiot." What happened next would surprise Kakashi just enough that he had to pause and rewind everything in his head.

Seemingly getting a boost of speed out of nowhere, she twirled around almost gracefully and smacked his hands successfully with a backhand swipe and disrupting his seal. Natsumi quickly made distance and almost entered into a taijutsu stance Kakashi could recognize anywhere. It was there he paused to process just what had occurred. Quickly filing away his thoughts, Kakashi refocused on his blonde opponent. "You're doing better than I thought, considering you had the lowest scores out of every passing student."

"Don't look down on me! You just might be surprised by what I can do!" Natsumi smirked, proud of herself that she managed to land a hit, no matter how insignificant it was.

"You said you're going to exceed the past Hokages, but your actions up till now say otherwise. By fighting messily and carelessly?" Kakashi turned his back on her and walked away, trying to get a reaction from Natsumi. If he could make her do whatever it was that allowed her to even make contact with him, he could then confirm his suspicions.

"I can't... I can't fail in a place like this no matter what! I'm going to be a ninja!" she shouted out for him to hear and performed the Kage Bunshin, six clones jumping out from the river behind her. "This is my best technique, the Tajuu Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!" Hidden in the forest but still able to observe, Sakura and Sasuke was pleasantly surprised at how adept Natsumi actually was. Even Kakashi was mildly surprised when he noted the clones were not Bunshin but Kage Bunshin. Still, he was not impressed. He calculated that it would only be effective for about a minute and despite her tough talk, Natsumi would not be able to defeat him if her fighting methods were to be believed. It was not until someone smaller than him grabbed him from behind that he was aware of Natsumi's plot. "A ninja shouldn't let the enemy get behind him, right, Kakashi-sensei?" the Natsumi holding him mocked. She had let one of the underwater clones swim away to sneak behind him, and it worked. The other six grabbed onto Kakashi to hold him still while the remaining Natsumi delivered a strong punch to his face, only to see that she had hit one of her other selves. Since she did not dispel, the one who got sucker-punched was the real Natsumi.**  
**

"Huh?" the clone who delivered the punch looked at the injured Natsumi in confusion. One of the other clones accused another one of being a Henge-d Kakashi before another told the arguing two to shut up and think. They all paused and looked at each other before muttering under their breaths what Hinata would do in their situation. Deciding to try something very risky to find a possibly Henge-d Kakashi, the real Natsumi shouted out to 'get into stance' for just a few seconds. All of them got into identical stances and eyed each other, seeing nothing wrong with all of them. "That means..." all the Natsumis piped up at once. "The Kawarimi!" The real Natsumi dispelled her clones, frowning to herself and clicking her tongue in annoyance. "I guess fighting with my clones isn't working. I really don't think Sakura or that bastard Sasuke will lend me a hand but..." She then left to find her other teammates to ask for their help.

Meanwhile, Kakashi observed Natsumi as her clones got into a small quarrel. Once again, he heard Hinata's name come up in their short discussion. They eventually figured out he used the Kawarimi to escape and not the Henge to fool them, but it was the way they figured it out that confirmed his suspicions. He also heard her mention wanting to get help from Sakura or Sasuke but doubted they will help her out before leaving to find them. Kakashi decided to find the other two before Natsumi found them first. Right now, Natsumi had most of his interest and he wanted to see just how she would fare if he interfered. He still needed to test his other two students, so it was like killing two birds with one stone.

Seeing Kakashi openly leave from his perch, Sasuke and Sakura quickly abandoned their respective hiding spots. Sasuke moved quickly to find another spot to observe Kakashi from while Sakura ran around trying to find Sasuke, fearing their teacher was going after him next. She stopped when she saw Kakashi apparently standing still reading his book until she heard him calling her from... behind? Turning around and seeing his hands in a seal, she momentarily lost awareness, saw something that was not real, screamed in fear and promptly fainted to Kakashi's dismay.

Sasuke paused briefly to note that Sakura had been caught by Kakashi before moving on. Natsumi rushed to where she heard the scream and found Sakura spread eagle on the ground unconscious. Cursing at the fact one of her teammates had been incapacitated, she made a Kage Bunshin to watch over Sakura for her as she left to find the remaining able teammate.

*****Break Line*****

Sakura soon woke up to Natsumi's incessant prodding and asked what she had been doing. Natsumi replied that she found her sleeping on the ground and was watching over her.

"Oh yes, I saw Sasuke-kun badly injured and I..." she said out loud, completely ignoring Natsumi. "Sasuke-kun! Don't die and leave me behind! Where are you?" she shouted, her voice ringing throughout the forest.

"Are you an idiot? Keep quiet!" Natsumi hissed at her as quietly as she could. "Sasuke isn't injured! He's not even around here! What are you talking about? He's fine!"

"You're annoying, Natsumi! You didn't see Sasuke-kun injured, and you don't even care!" A high-strung Sakura delivered a punch to an unsuspecting clone and dispelled it. Now that the annoying blonde was gone, Sakura heard Sasuke's panicked scream and hurriedly rushed to the direction it came from. Just upon entering a clearing, she saw Sasuke's head poking out of the ground. When he called out for her, she screamed that it was a severed head talking to her and fainted again, her reactions disturbing him greatly. When she regained consciousness, Sasuke had already dug himself out to safety much to her delight.

When he mentioned there was still time to get a bell, Sakura asked if he was still going for it. He replied since he managed to touch it, he could definitely get it the next time. Realizing she herself could not get a bell and not wanting to be separated from him, she suggested that they give up now and try again next year. The smile on her face was quickly wiped off when he shot her a menacing glare. Without any prompt, he started talking about his ambition and how it started. He claimed himself to be an avenger and that he needed to get stronger than 'that man'. The alarm bell set for noon then rang, signifying the end of their mission. Irritated that he wasted his time talking, Sasuke made his way back to their starting position. Sakura obediently followed him back and saw Natsumi in the process of being tied up to a log by Kakashi.

*****Break Line*****

After ten minutes of rest, Natsumi ended up the only one tied to the log. It was punishment for attempting to steal the lunches and give them to Sakura and Sasuke.

"Your stomachs are growling, eh?" Kakashi mentioned when he heard two empty stomachs protesting for food. "By the way, about the results of this training..." he paused to add some suspense. "None of you need to return to the Ninja Academy." Sakura started cheering while Sasuke made a satisfied sound, but Natsumi was not fooled. She knew well enough their performance was utter crap. Getting a passing grade for that was plain stupid.

"We didn't pass," Natsumi spoke up, stopping the celebrations.

"What are you saying, Natsumi? Kakashi-sensei said we don't need to go back, so that means we pass!" Sakura's mood quickly turned angry as Natsumi's seemingly pessimistic statement.

"Sakura, Natsumi is correct," Kakashi corrected Sakura.

"Eh?"

"You three... should quit being ninjas!"

"Quit being ninjas? What do you mean?" Natsumi asked desperately. Even though she expected a scathing remark about how badly they did, she did not expect this. "We didn't get a bell, but why do you have to say we should quit?"

"It's because you three are just kids who don't deserve to be ninjas," he mentioned casually, not caring that he was the one bringing down the hammer. Sasuke would not accept his reasoning and charged forward to attack him but was immediately taken down. "See? You all are just kids."

"Don't step on Sasuke-kun!" Sakura screamed. Natsumi wanted to barf at that. They were about to get kicked out of the ninja program entirely and she was worried about Sasuke being held down by Kakashi's foot?

"Do you guys think being a ninja is easy?" Kakashi's tone turned serious. "Why do you think we're training by breaking up into teams?"

"What do you mean?" Sakura asked.

"In other words, you three don't understand the answer of this test. The answer that determines whether you pass or fail."

"We've been asking what that is..." Sakura mumbled, shrinking away at Kakashi's stern look. Natsumi remained silent, only keeping her gaze on Kakashi. She already knew the answer to the test. Even though she did it unknowingly, Hinata had already given her the golden ticket to passing.

"Geez, are your brains empty? You don't understand why you're all in a team?"

"The answer is teamwork," Natsumi answered loud and clear, not flinching at Kakashi's look and glaring back defiantly.

"You mean cooperate with each other?" Sakura asked, looking at Natsumi for clarification.

"What else do you think it means? Aren't you the smartest one of our class? You don't know what teamwork means?" Natsumi mocked. If she was going to fail, she was going down with her head held high and true to herself. If Sakura was going to act stupid, she would treat her like she was stupid.

"That's right," Kakashi said. "But it's too late even if you realize it now. If all three of you came at me together, maybe you could have gotten a bell. But that's too bad."

"Why do we need use teamwork when there's only two bells?" Sakura asked, finally noticing the discrepancy. "If the three of us work hard to get it, one of us will have to fail. A group conflict will occur instead of teamwork."

"Of course. This test tries to put you three against each other." At their confused looks, he began to explain. "In this situation, we select those who can prioritize teamwork before themselves. That was the purpose, but all of you were pathetic. Sakura!" He began to pinpoint each of their wrongdoings. "You cared more about Sasuke instead of Natsumi who was right in front of you, and you didn't even know where Sasuke was. You even attacked Natsumi when she was concerned for you! Sasuke!" To make sure he was paying attention, Kakashi drove his foot a little harder into Sasuke's head. "You assumed that those two were only going to burden you and did everything yourself. And you, Natsumi!" Natsumi never dropped her glare at him. "All you did was act on your own!"

"Of course I had to act on my own! If you really saw everything we did, then you should know why I acted on my own!" Natsumi finally snapped. "I showed to you I understand teamwork! I worked with my clones, didn't I? When that didn't work, at least I tried looking for them! I even tried stealing the lunches from you to give to them! If you really bothered to look, you would know from the very start that they wanted nothing to do with me even though I tried to work with them!"

"...I know. I did see everything," Kakashi's softened the look in his eyes as he looked straight into Natsumi's eyes. "I saw the teamwork you had with your clones. When you found Sakura unconscious, you left behind a clone to watch over her while you tried to find Sasuke so you can team up. I understand you acting on your own. It's not because you refuse to cooperate with them, but it's because you already knew they won't cooperate with you, am I right?" Natsumi finally let her head drop, disappointed in herself that she was not able to help her team pass. "You hear that, you two? Honestly speaking, if I were able to pass only one of you, I would take Natsumi. She's the only one who actually understands what I'm trying to tell you. Missions are done in teams. While it's true that ninjas need well-developed individual abilities, teamwork is much more important. An individual action that disrupts the teamwork will result in danger or even death for the teammate." As an example, he drew a kunai and placed it next to Sasuke's neck, telling Sakura to kill Natsumi or else Sasuke would be killed.

Kakashi proceeded to mention that they risked their lives in every mission and gestured to the Memorial Stone where numerous names had been carved. They all belonged to Konoha ninjas who were praised as heroes. However, they were not normal heroes. They were those who were killed in the line of duty. After sharing a moment of silence, he turned to face the three students.

"Natsumi, if you want, you may choose to drop out now and I'll put in a good word for you to the Hokage to allow you to be teamed with Hyuuga Hinata next year," Kakashi told her.

"R-Really...?" Natsumi was stunned at the offer.

"Really. But at the same time, that means you are making Sakura and Sasuke fail alongside you. Even so, do you want to drop out so you can join your friend next year?"

"No... No, I can't. I promised Hinata-chan that we will both pass today. Hinata-chan won't want me to fail on purpose. I can't drag two people down with me just so I can get what I want. That's not right," Natsumi replied.

"What about you two?" Kakashi turned to Sakura and Sasuke. "I'll give you three another chance but if you fail again, Natsumi loses her chance to be teamed with Hinata. Let me tell you now, it will be much harder for you to get a bell after you eat the lunch I provided you. I can assure you that you will most likely fail if we fight, even if you team up against me. You can either fail by trying miserably, or you can choose to quietly drop out and give Natsumi her chance to be with her friend. I await your decision in ten minutes." With that said, he untied Natsumi and left them alone so they could enjoy their lunch while it lasted. For the entire ten minutes, an uncomfortable silence hung in the air other than the sound of chopsticks. "Well, what's your decision?" Kakashi asked when he returned.

"I'm not backing down! I'm gonna pass and be a ninja! I don't back on my word, because is my ninja way!" Natsumi declared with fierce determination in her eyes, ready to fight until the very end.

"Sensei, I..." Sakura gulped audibly. "I choose to drop out. All I did was faint. The least I can do is not get in Natsumi's way." She knew she was giving up her chance to be with Sasuke, but she was now well aware of the fact she had nothing to contribute to either of her teammate's efforts.

"How about you, Sasuke?" Kakashi turned his gaze to Sasuke.

"I'll drop out. I can get more reliable teammates next year. If Natsumi gets a bonus from it, I'm not going to take it from her," Sasuke made his choice.

"You guys..." Natsumi stared at both her teammates. Were they really going to drop out for her?

"In that case, all of you..." Kakashi paused to take a dramatic deep breath. "PASS!"

"Huh?" Natsumi was just as confused as her teammates at the sudden decision.

"You pass," he repeated. "You three are the first. All the others before you were idiots who just listened to what I said. Ninjas need to think beyond the normal. In the world of ninjas, those who break the rules are scum. But those who don't take care of their friends and comrades are even worse scum."

"He's... He's kind of cool..." Natsumi's eyes shone with great admiration for her teacher.

"The training ends here. Team 7 will start doing missions starting tomorrow!" All three newly christened Genin cheered in their own respective manners at the great news. "Let's go home. Natsumi, come with me for a moment. I've got something to discuss with you together with Hokage-sama." A little confused at being called out but still elated, Natsumi obediently followed Kakashi to the Hokage's office where she was told to wait for two other people. It did not take long for those two to turn up, and it was Hinata with her teacher Kurenai.

"Kakashi, what is this urgent matter you wish to speak with me in the presence of Kurenai and Hinata?" Hiruzen asked once all four were present. Kakashi had mentioned earlier it was something that needed immediate clarifying and it personally involved Natsumi and Hinata. They did not seem to be aware of the situation themselves as Natsumi had latched onto Hinata and was rubbing her cheek against hers as she was overjoyed at hearing both their teams had passed. A polite cough from Hiruzen silenced Natsumi's cheering and gestured for her to stand at proper attention.

"Before I reveal what it is to the two Genin, perhaps I should show it to you with my eye," Kakashi said. Since the two children were behind him, they could not tell what he did except he lifted up his hitai-ate for a few seconds before putting it back into its usual position.

"Is that really...?" Kurenai gasped.

"Hmm... This is really serious... And it might be labeled a serious offense if the Hyuugas push for it," Hiruzen sighed.

"Um... Hokage-sama, is there a problem concerning the Hyuuga clan?" Hinata spoke up timidly since the topic seemed to indirectly involve her. All the eyes of the adults were suddenly trained on her, causing her to flinch in fear. Seeing this, Natsumi quickly grabbed her hand to give her a measure of comfort.

"If you have something to say, just say it," Natsumi said. "Don't give Hinata-chan that kind of look."

"My bad, I didn't mean to come off that way. But since you asked, I suppose I'll just get straight to the point," Kakashi's tone of voice turned neutral, but something about his calm felt deadly. "Hyuuga Hinata, did you teach Uzumaki Natsumi the Juuken?" The two children visibly paled when they heard that, a clear sign they knew something about what Hinata was being accused of.

"W-What are you talking about, Kakashi-sensei?" Natsumi tried to pass it off as a joke by laughing very awkwardly. "There's no way I can learn the Juu-"

"This is no joke, Natsumi. What we're talking about here involves clan secrets and what you two have done is similar in weight to what Mizuki tried to pull," he immediately destroyed any notion that it was a laughing matter.

"Kurenai-sensei, I..." Hinata grew panicked and tried to turn to Kurenai for help but was only given a shake of the head, showing that she would get no help from her teacher. She had a look of sympathy in her eyes but she could not side with the children.

"If possible, I would like to avoid going for more severe interrogation methods. I strongly advise the both of you speak the truth. We will know if you're lying, and I hope you will not attempt to try and do so," Hiruzen gave a very clear warning.

"I will ask again. Hyuuga Hinata, did you teach Uzumaki Natsumi any form of Juuken?" Kakashi repeated himself.

"I... I..." Hinata was starting to have a panic attack.

"Hinata-chan didn't teach me anything!" Natsumi spoke up, moving in front of Hinata as though to shield her from the adults. "Sometimes we train together, and when we spar, of course she uses the Juuken! My taijutsu is utter crap when compared to hers, that's why I tried to copy some of her moves!"

"A half-truth," Hiruzen immediately called the bluff. "This is my last warning. Speak the truth, and only the full truth."

"I... helped Natsumi-chan through some of the motions of Juuken..." Hinata said, her voice barely above a whisper. She was gradually shifting to hide herself behind Natsumi. "But I didn't... I never taught her how to really use the Juuken..." Hiruzen nodded in acceptance, not finding a trace of a lie or a covered truth in her words.

"Hinata, the Juuken is exclusive only to your clan. Teaching it to outsiders is strictly forbidden and punishable as a severe offense in the face of your clan. Even though the Juuken is largely useless when used by someone without the Byakugan, it is still an offense regardless. Only the clan head, your father, has the authority to teach it to non-members. Other clan members do not have such a right. You must have known this, yet you still taught it to your friend. Why, Hinata?" Kurenai explained the committed offense as gently as possible to avoid distressing Hinata even further.

"I'm sorry...! I'm sorry...!" Hinata wept, grabbing the back of Natsumi's jacket like a lifeline and crying into it. She feared the coming punishment from her father. She could not stand seeing the disappointment showing on his face every time he looked at her. She wanted so desperately to run and hide, anything to avoid her father.

"STOP IT!" Natsumi yelled, spreading her arms wide in an open gesture that she would protect Hinata. "Don't blame Hinata-chan! It's not her fault! I needed help with my taijutsu and I asked her to teach me something because she's way better than me! I asked her to show me how to do the Juuken! If anything, it's my fault! Don't blame Hinata-chan for this! I won't let you!"

"...That seems to be all," Kakashi determined after no more questions were asked. "Hokage-sama, what do you make of this?"

"I will pursue this matter no further," Hiruzen gave his decision.

"Is that wise, Hokage-sama? Not that I wish for them to be punished for helping each other but..."

"Natsumi, I trust you are keeping your knowledge of Juuken a tightly kept secret?" Hiruzen inquired. Natsumi nodded fiercely in response. "Kakashi?"

"Though she showed brief signs of its use, Natsumi did attempt to hide it immediately with her own lackluster taijutsu," Kakashi reported, supporting his student's claim.

"Hyuuga Hinata, you may proceed with your teachings of Juuken to Uzumaki Natsumi," Hiruzen allowed. Hinata looked over Natsumi's shoulders to look at him, her face stained with tears. A look of shock could be seen on everybody's faces as they stared at the Hokage. "I'm willing to close one eye on this because it is clear you two possess the Will of Fire, something which I admire greatly. Make no mistake, this is an offense... but only if this is brought forward to me by a member of the Hyuuga clan. Then, and only then, will I deliver the punishment. I pray the both of you do not get caught."

"You hear that, Hinata-chan? We're safe! We're not in trouble!" Natsumi turned around to envelop Hinata in a huge hug.

"Yes... I'm so glad...!" Hinata spoke through her tears, but now they were tears of joy. The last thing she ever wanted was for Natsumi to get in trouble because of her. She never even considered the fact Natsumi could be blamed for starting this entire mess. It was her who decided to teach her in the first place. They shared equal blame, but she knew Natsumi would rather take all the blame for her sake. Despite her joy, she still could not stop her sobbing.

"Come on, don't cry so hard, Hinata-chan!" Natsumi rubbed her back. "You're going to make me cry too, you know..." Even though she said that, she could feel tears building up at her eyelids and she was sure a few of them had already escaped. As the two best friends sought comfort with each other, the three adults had gentle smiles on their faces. They had to be machines not to be touched by such a scene.

"Natsumi, Hinata, you both are free to go. Be sure to report to your Jounin teachers for your missions tomorrow," Hiruzen dismissed the two of them. When the two children left, Kakashi excused himself as well. "Is there something on your mind, Kurenai?" the Hokage asked when he saw some hesitation in the woman.

"Hokage-sama, I do have troubling news of my own," Kurenai reported.

"Make your report."

"Two of my students, Inuzuka Kiba and Aburame Shino, have told me either of them were willing to be traded to Team 7. I assume you are already aware of whom they are willing to be traded with?"

"Uzumaki Natsumi."

"I do not intend to question your judgement, but they have raised good points. Both Kiba and Shino agreed that they would be just as desperate as Natsumi to get back together with Akamaru and the kikaichuu if they were separated."

"I certainly understand where they are coming from, but unlike the Inuzukas with their dogs or the Aburames with their insects, Hinata and Natsumi are simply best friends, albeit best friends who share a bond so strong that it equals the bonds the two clans have. But in the end, they are not like the Inuzukas and the Aburames. They have to be separated in order to grow, but that comes with a risk that one or both will not be able to cope with the absence of the other. Fortunately, they seem to be just fine. My decision stands, but tell the two boys their worries have been noted."

"Yes, Hokage-sama. I will take my leave now," Kurenai bowed to the Hokage with respect before leaving. Hiruzen puffed his pipe as he looked towards the Hokage Monument, particularly the image of the Fourth Hokage. He smiled in remembrance as he hoped a bright future awaited the child the Fourth Hokage believed in.

*****Break Line*****

**Differences**

**The start of the bell test.**

**Canon: Naruto did not eat breakfast and was starving with the other two.**

**My version: The day before but after Kakashi informs Team 7 of the true Genin test, Natsumi meets up with Hinata to lament the fact they were not teamed together. After some time, she discusses how she dislikes her team and Hinata gives valuable advice on what to remember during her test. So when the test started, Natsumi is already well-fed and ready to go.**

**Before Kakashi starts the test.**

**Canon: Naruto mentions how Kakashi couldn't even avoid an eraser. Kakashi calmly returned the jab and Naruto tried to attack him unsuccessfully.**

**My version: The eraser prank did not happen, so Natsumi has nothing to say to Kakashi and does not try to attack him before he starts.**

**The fight between Naruto and Kakashi.**

**Canon: After being taunted with the book, Naruto fails to hit Kakashi and in return was hit by the Sennin Goroshi.**

**My version: Starts out the same way, but Natsumi intercepts the Sennin Goroshi with a sudden set of moves Kakashi didn't expect her to have.**

**When Naruto uses the Kage Bunshin and Kakashi escapes with Kawarimi.**

**Canon: After slugging himself, the clones and the real Naruto fought among themselves. After dispelling them, he falls for an obvious trap by Kakashi.**

**My version: Starts out the same way, but she avoids in-fighting because she's keeping Hinata's advice in mind. She does something unexpected to try to find an impostor among her clones but there is none and realizes Kakashi escaped via Kawarimi. Kakashi doesn't set up the obvious trap because Natsumi chose to look for Sakura and Sasuke instead of just standing there.**

**After Sakura falls to Kakashi's genjutsu.**

**Canon: Sakura wakes up, rushes to find Sasuke, sees him buried up to his neck and faints.**

**My version: Natsumi found Sakura unconscious from the genjutsu and leaves behind a clone to watch over her. When Sakura wakes up, she punches the clone for denying that Sasuke was ever injured, something which Sakura believes due to the genjutsu. Then she rushes off to find Sasuke.**

**Kakashi's announcement that they failed the bell test.**

**Canon: He criticizes each and every one of them for their abysmal performance during the test and for not realizing why they were placed in teams.**

**My version: Natsumi already knows they failed thanks to Hinata's advice. She also knows the answer and reveals it when Kakashi asks if they even knew the reason they were placed in teams. When he criticized them for their abysmal performance, Natsumi snaps because it isn't like she doesn't know what needs to be done but because she knows it won't work out, hence her solo actions. Kakashi is also aware of this fact and is a little apologetic to her for it.**

**Kakashi's second chance for Team 7 to pass.**

**Canon: Naruto remains tied up and Sakura and Sasuke offer him their food. When Kakashi confronts them, they mention that they are a team, allowing them to pass.**

**My version: Kakashi unties Natsumi and tells Team 7 if they don't accept the second chance, he will tell the Hokage to allow Natsumi to be teamed up with Hinata next year. Natsumi remains the only one willing to fight to the bitter end, but Sakura and Sasuke are willing to drop out to help Natsumi for the next time she tries to make Genin. Because they are willing to sacrifice their own wants, Kakashi passes them.**

**Extra Scene - Kakashi identifies Natsumi's uncharacteristic movements during the bell test as the motions for Juuken and starts a meeting with Hinata, Kurenai and the Hokage. Revealing it is an offense for Hinata to teach Juuken to outsiders, in this case Natsumi, the adults interrogate the two children. Pleased to see Natsumi willing to take the fall to protect Hinata, Hiruzen lets the issue slide. He reminds them that it is still an offense but he won't pursue the matter unless they were caught by another Hyuuga.**

*****Break Line*****

**Major changes to the canon events for this chapter! I hope you guys enjoy reading this as much as I enjoyed writing this chapter! I have to say, there are a few fanfics out there that have Naruto know Juuken. But that is because he, secretly or not, is a Hyuuga or he can master Juuken completely, techniques and all. Barring the ones that have him as a Hyuuga, the other fanfics tend to forget or remove one important point: his chakra control sucks. Period. He will never have the proper control to use Juuken effectively, and it doesn't matter if they give him the Byakugan or not. But hey, that's their fanfic so I won't criticize their work.**

**I choose to try a different style. I had Hinata teach Natsumi the Juuken, but. BUT! She only teaches the motions, not the chakra invasion because Natsumi doesn't have the Byakugan nor the chakra control needed to do it correctly. Keep it mind that Hinata's style of Juuken is also quite feminine, so the Juuken Natsumi has been learning is Hinata's rendition of it. ****On another note, from this point onward, Natsumi will be slightly more observant and her skills a little more diverse than Naruto's. She has been training with Hinata and if there are totally no changes, it will be so dull.**

**Thanks to all who liked and reviewed this story! I hope this chapter will keep your interest in this story going strong! Enjoy!**


	5. Hyuuga Hinata's D-Rank

Having to do D-Ranked missions for days on end since Team 7 passed irked Natsumi's nerves, but she reasoned that it was still a mission that needed to be done. After two weeks of them, she realized they were nothing more than glorified chores that wielded payment. She did not mind it so much if the person who requested the mission was unable to do said mission by themselves or actually needed the help, but most of the time they were lazy buggers who just had the money to spare. Despite having more spending money than ever before, she was still pissed off. She wanted something more! Something cooler! Something that would make the villagers acknowledge her as a person and a ninja! It did not help matters that Kakashi was constantly late by at least two hours and after they had their fill of D-Ranks, he always dismissed them. When was the training going to be done? Natsumi was always looking forward to that but that day never came.

Still, not everything was bad. Knowing Kakashi would always be late, Natsumi herself would wander off to find Team 8, more specifically Hinata, after she met up with her teammates at the designated time and confirming their instructor was not around. Sasuke could care less about what she did, and Sakura was more than happy for her to go so she could have some alone time with her crush.

*****Break Line*****

Team 8 thought nothing of Natsumi's presence when she popped up for their training sessions for the first few days but Kurenai grew concerned after a week of her continued presence. Natsumi did not disrupt her training sessions and her presence actually proved to be a positive factor when it came to Hinata, but it was still a cause of concern since she thought Natsumi was ditching Kakashi's own lessons for nearly two hours every time just to meet up with Hinata. It was even more troubling when Hinata had started making lunches for her everyday and was more often than not caught looking around to see when her best friend was going to drop by. It came to no surprise when Natsumi told her the reason she kept coming to see them was because Kakashi was always late... until that fateful day when Kakashi decided to break his own schedule of being consistently late due to an 'anonymous' request from one of his fellow Jounins.

*****Break Line*****

It started out per normal for Team 8 with the exception of Hinata carrying a lunch box with her meant for Natsumi. As always, after they started some warm-ups to prepare for their morning training, Natsumi eventually showed up.

"Good morning, Hinata-chan! Good morning, everybody!" Natsumi greeted them. It was a pet peeve for Kiba since everyone noted how Natsumi always greeted Hinata before addressing everyone else. Couldn't she just use the latter greeting since it involved all of them anyway? Apparently not since she moved straight to Hinata without looking at any of the others.

"Good morning, Natsumi-chan," Hinata greeted back with a bright smile, one that was obviously reserved for Natsumi. Not even Kurenai, who was the closest to her, had been given that smile. "Here, your lunch for today."

"Thanks as al-" Natsumi returned the used lunch box to Hinata from the day before, cleaned of course, and was about to take her new lunch box when another person's hand plucked it away from her.

"Hey Natsumi, what are you doing here instead of where I told Team 7 to meet?" Kakashi asked, surprising everyone except Kurenai with his sudden appearance.

"Kakashi-sensei!" Natsumi exclaimed. "Why are you so early?"

"Now, now, don't say that," he brushed her question aside. "You shouldn't leave the meeting area just because I'm late, you know."

"I'm only doing this because you are never on time, Kakashi-sensei!" she snapped. "Now give me back my lunch Hinata-chan made for me!"

"Hmm... No. I've decided as punishment, you get no lunch from Hinata. Here. You guys have it," he tossed the lunch box over to Kiba.

"Uh... thanks?" Kiba was not sure if he should be happy or not. Hinata certainly was not enjoying the turn of events.

"Give it back!" Natsumi immediately lunged for Kiba, ready to knock him down and reclaim what was hers until Kakashi pulled her away by the collar of her orange tracksuit. "But... Hinata-chan's lunch...!"

"No lunch for you. Now come on. Back to your own team," Kakashi slowly dragged her away even as she struggled violently.

"So, uh... I can share this with Akamaru, right?" Kiba asked Hinata hesitantly once the Genin and Jounin of Team 7 disappeared into the nearby forest. All he got was a depressed nod from Hinata and a whispered request for him to return the box to her tomorrow. As their day went by, the other members of Team 8 were shocked at how badly Hinata performed today. Her heart was not into their training, and she actually messed up badly in one of the D-Ranked missions that only made her even more depressed that she excused herself to cry for a short while. Hinata had recovered from her depressive state the next day and she did not have Natsumi's lunch with her. Her guess was right since she did not turn up at all, though she could not help but look around anyway. She did not seem too affected by Natsumi's absence this time around and things were back to normal, at least for a while.

*****Break Line*****

For the past few days now, Kakashi had been interfering with Natsumi's efforts to meet up with Hinata. She obediently waited alongside Sakura and Sasuke without wandering off the day after she got caught, and had to wait three hours before Kakashi showed up. When she tried sneaking off the next day, Kakashi was there waiting for her to wander off and drag her back before she could even get far. She even resorted to using her Kage Bunshin but he still managed to stop her.

"Why do you continue trying to sneak off?" Kakashi finally asked as she walked into a trap that tied her feet upside-down to a tree branch. While he thought it was amusing seeing her shout and rant in frustration at being unable to escape his notice, he still wanted to know.

"Because you're always late, Kakashi-sensei!" Natsumi accused childishly, pushing the blame to him. "If you're going to keep wasting time doing whatever it is you're really doing, at least let me do what I want during that time!" Kakashi stared blankly at her with his one eye as she pouted angrily. She was not in the wrong as in the view of others and even himself on occasion, he was indeed wasting time. He purposely chose to be late without a real reason, so he could understand why she took it as an opportunity to meet up with Hinata for a while. She was not disrupting Team 8 either, only to pick up her lunch and stay a while. The 'anonymous' request however, wanted him to keep her away from Team 8, for Hinata's sake.

"Hmm..." he pretended to think about it before walking away, ignoring Natsumi's demands to untie her.

*****Break Line*****

Even though Hinata knew Natsumi could no longer come to see her, she sometimes ended up making lunch for her anyway. In the end, she had to give it to either Kiba or Shino because she did not turn up to claim it. Her team knew that Natsumi's presence was always a comforting thing for her, so she wondered why Kurenai always had a worried look on her face whenever she brought along Natsumi's lunch.

"Hinata-chan!" Natsumi's yell echoed throughout the training grounds Team 8 used. Surprised, they all looked towards the approaching blonde. Did she manage to escape from her Jounin instructor?

"Natsumi-chan," Hinata could not help the smile that came to her lips.

"I did it! I finally escaped from Kakashi-sensei!" she bragged proudly.

"Hey," said instructor spoke up from behind her, making her scream in shock as she launched into the air from his sudden appearance. "How many times do I have to tell you not to disturb Team 8 when I'm not around?"

"I don't disturb them! I only came to accompany Hinata-chan for the time I know for sure you'll be late!"

"You're not supposed to do that. I'm sure Hinata must be very happy to have you around but you are disturbing them in a way you can't see," he told her.

"Really?" she asked, surprised.

"Really."

"Then, can I at least take the lunch Hinata-chan makes for me?"

"Well, if that's the only thing you're going to do, I don't see why not."

"Kakashi!" Kurenai exclaimed, appalled he would allow such a thing.

"It's only over a lunch box. Don't be mad over something so trivial," he brushed aside her concerns.

"I'm not mad, just..." she trailed off as she eyed the two best friends exchanging hugs and Natsumi being handed her homemade lunch.

"I know," he understood the unsaid message. "But if just seeing her is enough to raise Hinata's spirits to do better, then allowing her not to just for a lunch box is cruel."

"They have to stop relying on each other like this. Hokage-sama wants them to grow stronger while apart."

"This is merely encouragement. Look at them carefully," he pointed out. "Hinata admires Natsumi and wants to be strong like her, which is why she works so hard. Natsumi, on the other hand, wants to be strong for Hinata's sake just as much as for her own dream. She wants to protect the bond she holds closest to her. That is obvious by how protective she is of Hinata but at the same time not sheltering her. Even just seeing each other encourages the other to strive higher. If allowing Hinata to make lunch for Natsumi daily helps them to grow, I believe it's for the best."

"I understand that, but Hinata has to learn to grow confident by herself. She's very cooperative with Kiba and Shino and performs well with team tasks, but she does poorly when settled with an individual task or when the important parts of a team task fall to her. I will admit those poor performances disappear entirely on the days Natsumi came to visit for the two hours you're late but she can't rely on Natsumi encouraging her every time. They can't keep holding hands forever if they want to grow."

"I see your point," Kakashi agreed. "Whenever Natsumi encounters a problem that can't be solved with force alone, she always turns to Hinata for advice. Did you know that according to Iruka's reports on her Genin file, she listens to Hinata more closely than she does for anyone else, even the teachers? She's short-sighted and unable to see the bigger picture in most situations, so she lets Hinata do it for her. She's also bull-headed, always wanting to beat Sasuke at something, anything, and wanting to be the one who leads. That's no surprise since her dream is to be Hokage. The surprise is that Natsumi has absolutely no problems deferring to Hinata. She doesn't jostle for position or even try to argue her point with her. She actually listens obediently to her because Hinata knows how to make it easy to understand for her. She keeps whatever Hinata says in mind. She even chose to listen to Hinata's advice rather than my instruction during the Genin Test. Granted, I was trying to trick them but you get the point."

"Which is exactly why I'm trying to keep them apart and I need your help to do this, Kakashi."

"Don't worry, I will. I won't let Natsumi stay with Team 8 unnecessarily. Just let her come by to pick up her lunch," Kakashi gave her his eye-smile. Seeing Natsumi start scuffling with Kiba in good nature with Hinata giggling in amusement at their antics, Kurenai relented with a small smile. Hinata had already taken a very hard blow from hearing how her own father had delegated all duty of care and protection of her well-being to Kurenai. Kurenai did not need to add to that by denying her the simple joy of making lunch for her best friend.

*****Break Line*****

Natsumi picking up lunch everyday quickly became the norm for Team 8 until she abruptly announced that Team 7 was finally getting a C-Rank mission outside the village for a number of weeks. Instead of taking the lunch box for later consumption, she quickly finished her food on the spot since she had to be getting ready for her mission. After the morning training of Team 8, Kurenai brought them to the Mission Assignment Room to get their daily D-Rank missions.

"There's also an additional request for Team 8 for a long-term D-Rank mission. The client is very specific as to who she wants for this mission," Hiruzen mentioned after giving out one of the more common missions. "Here are the details of that mission." He picked out a scroll from the table and tossed it over to Hinata specifically. She unfolded it and began reading.

"Natsumi-chan wants me to care for her apartment while she's gone on her C-Rank mission?" Hinata was surprised Natsumi had actually made a mission request for this.

"We can do that? I mean, we can be the clients for a mission?" Kiba was surprised as well.

"Everyone in the village are eligible for a mission request, even ninjas," Kurenai answered.

"You are to stay over at Natsumi's apartment for the period of time she is gone on her mission and you are free to consume any food she has. However, your other missions take priority as this is long-term and you will be treating it as your own home for quite a while. I trust you won't say no?" Hiruzen had a knowing smile on his face as Hinata's face brightened considerably.

"Yes, Hokage-sama," Hinata replied.

"You will be payed, of course. This is still a mission."

"If it's for Natsumi-chan, I don't mind doing it for free."

"That's good to hear. Now off you go."

*****Break Line*****

As Team 8 did their assigned D-Ranks that day, Hinata had a spring in her step and a small but constant smile. Once the day was over, Hinata had to report to her father that she had been assigned a long-term D-Rank mission to care for a client's household and that she was required to stay until the client returned. She tried her best to do so neutrally and avoided mentioning Natsumi's name, but inside she was almost jumping for joy. All Hiashi said was to not disappoint the client and do her mission properly. His voice was cold as always but for once Hinata was not affected as Natsumi would never hold those negative emotions against her even if she did fail.

Packing her clothes almost hastily, she could not wait to finally make Natsumi's apartment into her temporary home. She did not dislike the Hyuuga household, but over the last few years it had lost the homely feel to it. It had became a place for her to simply return to once the day was over. Even though she rarely dropped by Natsumi's apartment once Natsumi learned to maintain her home properly, Hinata always felt it contained a large amount of the homely feeling. Here, there was nothing to put pressure on her. She could be at ease all she wanted and she would always be welcome there.

When she arrived at Natsumi's apartment, she entered with a child-like joy as she breathed deeply, taking in as much of the homely feeling as it could provide. Natsumi was also considerate enough to buy some packed cinnamon rolls for her to enjoy during her stay according to the note on the table. Since it was nearing nightfall, she headed straight to the bedroom where she quickly unwind herself, relaxing almost immediately when she laid on Natsumi's bed. Looking at the bed top, she saw the team photograph of Team 7. Kakashi and Sakura were the only two smiling at the camera while Natsumi and Sasuke were glaring at each other. She giggled at it before looking at the more prominently displayed photograph. It was the additional photograph they took together. The picture frame was very clean and the glass sparkled as though Natsumi had cleaned it everyday. It was very clear to Hinata that she valued it much more than her team photograph. Even though she already knew how close they were to each other, she still felt very touched by the gesture.

*****Break Line*****

It had been only two days since Hinata moved into Natsumi's apartment, but the other members of Team 8 could easily see the difference in her. To put it in simple terms, she looked very fresh compared to all the other times since Team 8 was first formed. Of course, those other times meant those where she came from the Hyuuga household. A little curious on why she was suddenly so fresh, Kurenai decided the team would 'aid' with her long-term mission the next day and they would meet up at Natsumi's household.

Seeing the apartment very neat and tidy was nothing special since Hinata was always one for cleanliness. What surprised them was Hinata moving around the apartment like she had owned it for years. Remembering where everything was located could be done in two days but not with the practiced ease Hinata had. She never paused to think about where Natsumi's things were as she prepared a simple breakfast for Team 8. After that, she gladly took their offer to help by requesting they help with the shopping. Even the loud Kiba was stunned silent by how efficiently she handled housework. Hinata seemingly forgot about them when she began talking to herself about Natsumi's poor diet and how she had to cook vegetables in a certain manner for her lunches so she could eat them without cringing. A polite cough from Kurenai reminded her of their presence, and an embarrassed Hinata gave her teammates a shopping list. Apparently, shopping was the only thing she could not get done due to their own daily training and missions. She asked them to go on ahead as she stayed behind to finish her cleaning.

"Was that really Hinata?" Kiba finally spoke up once they were sent on their way to do shopping. "I can almost swear she is possessed by some sort of house-keeping spirit."

"Nothing is wrong with Hinata, Kiba," Kurenai replied along with an affirmative nod from Shino.

"I concur. That is because Hinata is at her calmest and most relaxed state while she has been staying there," Shino explained. "These household chores put her at ease."

"Alright, get going, you two. I'll keep watch over Hinata," Kurenai urged them and the two boys picked up their pace as they left for the shopping. Once they were out of sight, she returned to the apartment and saw Hinata dutifully cleaning the floor with a happy smile on her face. Deciding now was a good time to ask, she called for her student to sit with her at the sofa. "Hinata, it is no secret that you and Natsumi are best friends. But from what I've seen, you two are much more closer than that by the way you seem to be pampering her, this apartment included. As your instructor, I have to know in order to help you. Just what is your relationship with her?" she questioned.

"Natsumi-chan is very much family to me," Hinata answered with utmost sincerity. "At first, we were just friends. But for Natsumi-chan, I was no mere friend. Being the only friend her age, I was defaulted as being her best friend. I too eventually considered her my best friend. But after seeing just how poorly Natsumi was treated by the other Academy students and even by the teachers, and then seeing firsthand how much the villagers hated her, I wanted to be something more to her. Natsumi-chan grew up with absolutely nothing and even after entering the Academy, she had nothing but me for a few years. Even though my father is heavily disappointed in me, I still grew up with something. I had the love of my parents and I treasure the things my late mother has done for me. After her passing, I didn't grow in the way my father expects of me. I know in my clan's eyes I am weak. But Natsumi-chan was the first person to ever believe in me and encourage me. She taught me how to never give up. I admire her greatly for her determination. She had nothing, but she grew up to be so strong. Not in skills, but in character. She has helped me so much, yet all I can do is just being her friend? It's not enough, not for me. That's why I don't mind doing these things for her. I like them very much because it will help Natsumi-chan smile. I want her to know the love of a family. I want to give her the one thing she's missing even if it is just an impression. I just want to do that much for Natsumi-chan... because she is family..."

Kurenai watched silently as Hinata broke down into tears at the end of her explanation. She may never truly understand but she could say she now knew. Knowing the relationship between the two girls and understanding that relationship were two different things. It was left unsaid, but Kurenai easily figured out that Hinata was trying her best to emulate her late mother for Natsumi. She wanted to show what it meant to have a family's love. That was why Hinata always made lunch boxes for Natsumi and was gladly willing to do house chores for her. Through such simple gestures, it gave both of them much-needed assurance that they were there for each other. They each held the other at the highest pedestal of their respective lives.

"Hinata, as your instructor, I have made a grave mistake towards you. I am sincerely sorry," Kurenai bowed her head to show sincerity, surprising Hinata and stilling her tears.

"W-Why, Kurenai-sensei? There's nothing to apologize for," Hinata said.

"It was me who requested Kakashi for his aid in order to stop Natsumi from coming to our morning training. I had believed she was giving you false encouragement. The both of you are on different teams, and I feared her dropping by was disrupting your growth as an individual. I was wrong. Her presence allows you to strive harder to be a better person. She encourages you without needing to utter a single word. As a Jounin instructor, I am supposed to understand the Genins under my charge and help you grow. Instead, I am the one who had unknowingly attempted to stump your growth."

"I see... But it's alright, Kurenai-sensei. You had my best interests in mind, so I can understand why you felt that way," Hinata reassured her instructor.

"Thank you, Hinata. ...It seems the boys are back," Kurenai mentioned just before the door opened and revealing said boys. "Shall I help you with preparations for lunch?"

"Yes, Kurenai-sensei!"

*****Break Line*****

It took just about a month before Natsumi returned from her C-Rank mission. Hinata could tell with a single glance that she had grown significantly during that month, looking more resolute than before. Natsumi explained about how her C-Rank mission unexpectedly turned into an A-Rank because the client lied and meeting up with the infamous Momochi Zabuza and his accomplice Haku. She spoke about how their deaths changed her beliefs about ninjas and that they were human too and did not deserve to be treated like mechanical tools. Hinata was very pleased to hear that and for her achievements. But then came an unexpected request from Natsumi who had a dead serious look mixed with pleading on her face.

"Hinata-chan, I need you to teach me a long-range technique even if it's a Juuken technique. If I can learn and use it properly, please teach me!"

*****Break Line*****

**This chapter is more of an original chapter than adjusted canon events. I only filled in for the time after passing the Genin Test to before Team 7 was granted their first C-Rank mission.**

**For this chapter, Hinata is the main focus. I also had Natsumi do some mischief with Kakashi in an effort to visit Hinata while he's late. I went more in-depth about the relationship between Natsumi and Hinata, with more insight from Hinata's side of the relationship. Consider the C-Rank mission canon with no changes. There's actually not much I can change about it. If anything is changed, it's Natsumi's request for Hinata to teach her a long-range technique.**

**Be prepared, readers! The Chuunin Arc is coming in the next chapter! Expect changes, some serious and others funny. A missed scene that occurred in early canon will be brought to life next! What, you ask? It's between Natsumi and Hinata, I'll say that much.**

**I look forward to getting more readers! Do Like/Follow/Review this fanfic, and big thanks for those who are kind enough to do so!**


	6. The Chuunin Exam Begins!

In all honesty, Hinata had not expected her father to allow her to learn any sort of Juuken technique until she had mastered the basics to his satisfaction. While he did answer her question of whether there was a ranged attack in the Juuken repertoire, which was a yes, she simply did not expect him to agree to teaching her the Hakke Kuushou. According to him, it was the simplest of techniques in Juuken other than the basic applications of their renowned taijutsu. Despite not saying so, it was clear to Hinata he was not expecting her to get it down without any difficulty. He was right. For the first few days, Hinata could not perform the high-speed palm thrust needed to complete the technique. She had gotten everything else right on the first day. Gathering and controlling the chakra was easy enough. Forming the vacuum shell was easy enough. She just did not have the physical speed needed for the high-speed thrust in order to launch said vacuum shell that served as the technique's projectile. Without being able to shoot it, the technique was nothing more than a harder Juuken palm strike at best if performed at point-blank range. Still, she persevered for days to condition her arms for the high-speed thrust, if only for the sake of Natsumi's desperate plea for help.

*****Flashback*****

"Why are you asking me this, Natsumi-chan?" Hinata was very surprised when she heard Natsumi's request.

"I was useless! Sasuke almost died because of me!" Natsumi shouted in frustration at herself, making Hinata gasp in shock.

"You're not useless, Natsumi-chan. Surely you must have done something to help," she tried calming her down.

"Only at the very end. I can't remember it clearly, but I defeated Haku after I thought Sasuke was dead. It shouldn't have gotten that far at all!"

"Can you explain to me how the fight went?"

Natsumi retold the fight as best as she could after joining the fight. Hinata listened raptly, trying to determine what was the cause of Natsumi's request. By the end of the recollection, she could understand why Natsumi asked her such a thing. During the fight with Haku, Natsumi felt useless because she could not do anything to help Sasuke fend off their opponent. She had been nothing more than a distraction to buy Sasuke precious time he needed to finally adjust to Haku's movements and awaken his Sharingan. The fact that she entered the fight midway and was the first to collapse from her injuries when Sasuke was already injured prior to her joining in had added to her frustrations and reinforced her belief that she was utterly useless during the fight because she did not have any long-range technique to help him with.

Hinata frowned sadly for her best friend. She must have felt horrible and seeing her so angry with herself depressed Hinata. Quickly replacing her concerned frown for a determined expression, she promised Natsumi that she would find a technique suitable for them to learn.

*****End flashback*****

In hindsight, it was a good idea Hinata decided to go along with Natsumi's request. She realized she too had a severe disadvantage against ranged opponents. Shino was already a ranged fighter himself, and Kiba was fast enough to get up close and personal and engage in close combat. In case he could not do that, he had no problems attacking from range either. Hinata had no such flexibility. All she had, besides her Byakugan, was superior taijutsu over her two teammates according to Kurenai.

By the time Hinata was able to properly use the Hakke Kuushou, the sudden announcement that Kurenai had inserted them into the Chuunin Exam put a wrench into her plans. There was no time for her to teach Natsumi the technique before it started. Feeling a little let down she could not learn it faster, she apologized solemnly to Natsumi who brushed it off with a cheerful laugh. She reassured Hinata that she was already being a big help and even if she could not teach her now, at least she had something new for herself.

*****Break Line*****

Hinata felt extremely relieved when she saw Team 7 enter the hall where the first part of the Chuunin Exam were to take place. Ino from Team 10 immediately pounced on Sasuke and started acting lovingly towards him and completely missing the look of extreme annoyance on his face. That sparked an angry reaction from Sakura who told her to get away from him. A small argument broke out between the two and Natsumi walked away from her team with disgust. Sakura had become slightly friendlier to her over time as a team, but it still pissed Natsumi off greatly whenever she saw Ino and Sakura argue. Her mood quickly changed when she spotted Team 8.

"Yeah! Found you all!" Kiba called out to the group as Team 8 joined in. "So I see that everyone is here."

"Hello..." Hinata, being the shy person that she was, squeaked out a greeting that only her teammates and Natsumi could hear.

"What? So you three made it too? Geez..." Shikamaru grumbled to Team 7.

"I see, so all nine Genin rookies this year are going to take the exam. How far do you think we can get, Sasuke-kun?" Kiba addressed Sasuke in a challenging tone, adding the honorific mockingly.

"You seem to be confident, Kiba," Sasuke replied with an equally challenging smirk.

"We trained like hell. We won't lose to you."

"Shut up," Natsumi butted herself into the conversation, feeling left out ever since a senior Genin named Rock Lee dominated Sasuke in a spar just minutes ago. When Natsumi wanted a try, he refused, albeit politely, claiming that she was even less of a challenge than Sasuke. "Putting Sasuke aside, I won't lose to you."

"Sorry, Natsumi-chan. Kiba-kun didn't mean it that way..." Hinata apologized on her teammate's behalf, pushing her index fingers together as a sign of her nervousness.

"You guys should keep it down a little," someone not of their group spoke up. It was a white-haired young man wearing glasses and a Konoha hitai-ate. He identified them as the Rookie Nine, the Genins who graduated from the Academy that same year. He cautioned them not to make too much of a ruckus and as rookies, they were taking the Chuunin Exam too lightly. Ino asked who he was to be telling them that, and he introduced himself as Yakushi Kabuto. As a sign of goodwill, he shared some information he had gathered on his previous attempts to be promoted to Chuunin, this time being his seventh try. Sasuke took this chance to ask about two individuals that had his interest, Gaara from Sunagakure and Rock Lee from their own village. As Kabuto went through the information he knew about Rock Lee, a person named Hyuuga Neji was mentioned as his teammate. Hinata could not help but flinch and shudder at hearing her relative's name.

"What's wrong, Hinata-chan?" Natsumi had caught her involuntary actions and was looking at her worriedly. Hinata shook her head to dismiss Natsumi's worries but accepted the offered hand for comfort. As they continued to listen to Kabuto's shared information, it only got more serious the more he explained.

"I'm starting to lose confidence..." Hinata mentioned, feeling intimidated by the atmosphere surrounding the Chuunin Exam.

"It's too late to say things like that!" Ino reprimanded the timid girl.

"It'll be alright! The way you are now, you'll pass this thing no sweat!" Natsumi supported Hinata, giving her a confident grin that told her she believed in her.

"Right... Thank you, Natsumi-chan but... will you be okay? Kurenai-sensei said a Chuunin is not all about strength and power..." Hinata grew worried when Natsumi froze and started trembling from held back anxiety. When she saw a smirk grace her lips however, Hinata got worried because she just knew Natsumi would do something silly and attract unnecessary trouble. When she took a deep breath in to shout towards every other Genin participant in the room, Hinata quickly covered her mouth and muffled her shout.

"What are you doing, Hinata-chan? Why did you stop me?" she whined once she pulled her hand away from her mouth.

"You can't do that, Natsumi-chan!" Hinata whispered in a panicked tone. "You can't provoke them! You'll make everyone into your enemy!"

"But they need to know that I'm the best around and I'll beat all of them!"

"You can't! If everyone is your enemy, you'll never become Hokage, Natsumi-chan! No-one wants a Hokage who picks a fight with everybody around her!"

"Really?" Natsumi paled, not wanting to make her dream of being Hokage even further away than it should be. At Hinata's nod, she obediently mumbled an agreement to her great relief. That relief was quickly gone when they heard Kabuto vomiting due to an attack from the trio from Otogakure. While Hinata was busy calming Natsumi down, they attacked him because they took offense about his information on their village. Fortunately, the arrival of the proctor and his Chuunin assistants brought an end to the conflict, threatening to kick anyone out if they caused any further disturbances. He introduced himself as Morino Ibiki, and the Chuunin Exam was now officially underway.

*****Break Line*****

_'Really?'_

That was the thought going through seven of the Rookie Nine's minds. The reason for that was because the remaining two were seated right at the very front, and right next to each other. They would not have paid much attention if it was any other pair, but that pair just happened to be Natsumi and Hinata. Just how lucky could those two girls be?

The first part of the Chuunin Exam was a written test. Despite Hinata helping her with literary matters during their Academy years, this test was way beyond Natsumi's ability to answer any of the nine questions. The last question was to be given near the end of the time limit given. It was a deduction-based test and for each wrong answer, they lost a point out of a maximum of ten. If anyone attempted to cheat and got caught, they lost two points for each time the Chuunin examiners caught them. Ibiki drove home the point that there would be people who would be forced to leave before their paper even got graded. However, if anyone got their points reduced to zero, their respective team would fail as a whole.

That sent Natsumi into a panic. She could feel the death glares of her teammates directed towards her. As far as they were concerned, she was Team 7's weakest link in terms of academic intelligence. She was actually not that stupid like they believed as Hinata had tutored her and she had gotten a good passing grade on the Academy's written test for the Genin graduation. Her status as the 'dead-last' was just because her other grades could not support her failing grade of the Jutsu portion of the exam. Despite the tough situation, she kept her head held high and confidently stared down her test paper.

_'When doing a written test, I have to stay calm and focus on the questions. Find the ones that look easy, and then try my best on them,' _Natsumi mentally ran through the list of tips Hinata had given her to help her cope with written tests. But when she looked through the test paper again, none of them were easy. She did not even have a clue what they were asking about! Thinking about the rules more clearly, the only other option she had was to cheat without getting caught five times. A glance from Ibiki to her general direction sent her into a panic and she quickly erased that thought. It was way too risky! She did not know if being caught by five examiners on one instance of cheating counted as five strikes.

Thirty minutes had passed and Natsumi was still stuck on whether she should cheat or not. She knew she had to get at least one question right. She had to cheat to keep just that one point but the fear of failing immediately when she tried was just too strong.

"Natsumi-chan, relax. I'll help you," Hinata whispered just loud enough for her to hear. Natsumi glanced over to take a small peak and her eyes widened when she saw eight questions had already been answered. Wow, Hinata was smart! She did not remember her activating her Byakugan to cheat at all. It was most likely she answered them with her own knowledge. "I'll show you my test."

"Is it okay with you, Hinata-chan? We both might be penalized for cheating! Both our teams could fail!" Natsumi was feeling too pressured to just accept her goodwill for what it was.

"It'll be alright. At the very least, copy just one down. We might get caught, but you should be done before we get caught five times," she reassured her, pushing half her paper towards Natsumi but she still had to lean over a little to see clearly. "I don't want your dream to disappear here, Natsumi-chan. I will do whatever it takes to help you achieve your dream."

"Thank you, Hinata-chan...!" Natsumi sniffed back premature tears of gratitude and shuffled over to the edge of her chair to take a peek. The moment she did, however, a kunai whizzed right behind her head, making her lose her balance. Natsumi yelped loudly as she swung her arms wildly to try and regain balance but her chair tipped sideways and she fell straight towards Hinata.

"Natsumi-chan?" Hinata exclaimed in surprise when she suddenly saw Natsumi looming over her and just about to land on her. Fortunately, Hinata was not knocked off her chair when she fell. She had broken Natsumi's fall despite being caught unprepared. Unfortunately...

It was dead silence for nearly thirty seconds as all eyes were turned towards the two best friends. If an outsider had entered the room during that time, they would have seen some boys and men drooling with foolish looks on their faces, some girls and women blushing heavily or hiding their red faces with their hands, wide shocked eyes from majority of the room's occupants, disturbed looks from a smaller minority of people and only Ibiki having a look of indifference on his face. The sound of a pencil being dropped by one of the examiners broke the silence. Suddenly, loud booty calls and whistles were being thrown around. The reason for this momentary outburst?

When Natsumi fell on Hinata, the latter was only just beginning to react to the former falling towards her but she was far too late in trying to catch her but her arms still went around her body. The end result? Although caused purely by accident, it looked like Hinata had grabbed Natsumi off her seat for a tight hug and a deep kiss. The two best friends were so shocked they apparently forgot their lips were still touching as they stared directly in each other's eyes for several long seconds.

"All of you shut up and sit down! You two brats! Stop locking your lips and get back to doing the test!" Ibiki barked, restoring order immediately and leveling the entire room with a menacing look in his eyes, even towards his own Chuunin examiners. They hastily uttered out an apology and got back to checking for any careless cheating and dismissing those that hit the quota for failure.

The two best friends regained awareness before hastily separating when they heard his order. Natsumi could swear steam was exiting from Hinata's ears as she turned as red as a lobster. She could feel her own blush getting stronger and hotter as she awkwardly righted her chair and sat down in her original position.

"I don't care if you two plan on continuing somewhere private later but now this is my time! Pull that nonsense again and your teams fail on the spot!" Ibiki threatened.

"Y-Yes s-sir!" Natsumi stammered an acknowledgement, utterly intimidated by the proctor. Hinata, on the other hand, had only heard the first sentence. It may have sailed right over Natsumi's head, but Hinata was well aware of the hidden meaning. A small groan left her lips as everything went black for her as she fell off her chair. "Hinata-chan!" Natsumi cried out for her friend. Her face was so red and her eyes had somehow turned into comical swirls as she had fainted from sheer embarrassment. "HEY! What did you do to her, you creep!" she snapped at Ibiki.

"...Take her to the infirmary a few doors down the hall. Pray that you two get back here before I give out the final question," Ibiki refrained from shaking his head. Whether it was amusement at the ridiculous situation or exasperation, he did not care. He watched as she exited the room, calling out to the unconscious girl all the while.

*****Break Line*****

At the Academy staff room where Kakashi, Kurenai and Asuma were lounging around for the results of their team's respective success or failure, they heard chatter from the Chuunin examiners talking to each other rather excitedly outside.

"I can't believe something like that actually happened," one of them said. That naturally got the attention of the three Jounins.

"Yeah. It's totally unexpected, but it was a great sight to behold," his partner agreed, sounding almost proud he saw whatever it was they saw.

"Who were they again?"

"Uzumaki Natsumi and Hyuuga Hinata."

"Oh? This sounds interesting," Asuma chuckled as Kakashi and Kurenai's interest in the conversation rose.

"If the Hyuuga clan ever heard of this, a great scandal will occur and tarnish their name. I almost feel sorry for the two girls if it got out. Luckily for them, Ibiki-san told us what happened in there remained in there. No-one can speak of this."

"As long as we leave out names and obvious clues, we're free to speak of this publicly, right?"

"I guess so..."

"They're still young, but it was kinda... exciting."

"A slight shame their bodies aren't matured or I might actually get turned on by that kiss."

"Two girls kissing in public. Don't see that very often."

Kurenai's face lit up with embarrassment when she heard that. Kakashi only let out an amused sound but she swore she heard a perverted giggle just before that. Asuma had a look of disbelief on his face at the news.

"Natsumi is the Number One Unpredictable Ninja for a reason, you know?" Kakashi joked.

"This isn't funny, Kakashi! Don't you know how much trouble they will be in, especially Hinata?" Kurenai exclaimed.

"Now, now. You know Hinata isn't the type of person to do that kind of thing in public. Natsumi is the one always hugging Hinata when she feels happy, and I doubt kissing comes to her mind. Perhaps in the future, though..." Kakashi giggled out loud this time.

"Kakashi!" she screamed, thoroughly appalled and feeling scandalized for her student.

"Calm down, Kurenai. Kakashi is just fooling around with you," Asuma tried to ease her tension. When Kakashi suddenly dropped his joking mood and turned solemn, they tensed up.

"But in all seriousness, it's actually a lot safer for Natsumi if she were to like girls instead of boys," he mentioned with melancholy, as though remembering a terrible memory.

"...Was she abused by boys, or men, in her younger years?" Asuma asked, apparently sharing the same thought with Kurenai judging by the look of horror dawning on her face.

"No, no, nothing drastic like that," Kakashi dismissed their horrifying thoughts away with a wave of his hand. "It has more to do with what she carries in her that makes it dangerous for her to get into a proper relationship with boys." A pointed look to them with his exposed eye made them realize what he was referring to. All Jounins knew what Natsumi carried in her but Kakashi was the one that knew the most about how it affected his student.

"Yo, Kakashi-sensei!" Natsumi's voice was loud and clear as the door opened to reveal the Rookie Nine with various degrees of pride on their faces.

"Hey, guys. Congratulations on passing, all of you," Kakashi greeted them with his eye-smile. "What brings you here?" They told their Jounin instructors about how they were told to ask them about the location of the second part of the Chuunin Exam. After giving them the needed information, Kakashi told Natsumi and Hinata to stay behind. Curious at the order but obeying nonetheless, the two girls waited for Kakashi to speak.

"Uh... Kakashi-sensei? What is it?" Natsumi asked when Kakashi only kept his eye-smile up.

"Kakashi?" Asuma got curious at his colleague's silence. Kurenai had narrowed her eyes at him in suspicion.

"How was it?" Kakashi finally asked.

"How was what?" Natsumi quirked an eyebrow.

"The kiss you shared with Hinata." Both girls' faces exploded into redness when they heard him. "How was it?" Natsumi descended into nonsensical stammering while Hinata hid herself behind Natsumi and was barely peeking over her friend's shoulder.

"Kakashi, don't ask about that kind of thing!" Kurenai tried to rescue the two girls who were gradually breaking down from embarrassment.

"Sensei's orders," he expertly ignored her and blatantly pulled rank to force an answer out of the Genins. "How did it feel sharing your first kisses with each other?"

"...It felt..." Natsumi took a deep breath in an attempt to relax but Hinata's death grip on her tracksuit was not helping, instead making her more nervous.

"Yes?" Kakashi prompted.

"It felt... good," she finally answered, her face just as red as Hinata's.

"How did Hinata's lips feel like?"

"Soft... and smooth..."

That was the limit of Hinata's threshold of embarrassment as she once again fainted at Natsumi's forced response. It was embarrassing enough as it was to be reminded of their accidental first kiss, but to know that she had the exact same feelings as her was just too much! When she recalled the memory, it had sparked a strange feeling in her and the only word she had for it was just... good. It felt good. When she had recovered from the shock of their kiss, the feeling of Natsumi's lips on her own registered in her brain. And just like she was forced to admit, Natsumi's lips did feel soft and smooth. Despite fainting, her death grip still remained. As she fell to the floor in a heap, she pulled Natsumi down and almost cracked the back of her skull with how hard her head smashed into the floor, rendering the blonde unconscious as well.

"Kakashi! Just look at what you've done!" Kurenai screamed at him before carrying the two girls away, and hopefully away from more embarrassment when they woke up.

*****Break Line*****

**Differences**

**Naruto's declaration of challenge before the Chuunin Exam starts.**

**Canon - Naruto declares he will not lose to any other Genin participants.**

**My version - Hinata realizes Natsumi is going to do something silly and stops her from making the declaration of challenge. She explains that provoking everyone there and making them her enemies is not something a Hokage would do.**

**Hinata offering her aid to Naruto to help him pass.**

**Canon - Naruto questions Hinata's motives for letting him cheat before eventually accepting. When someone behind him fails due to being caught cheating, a kunai is thrown and whizzes just right in front of his face. Thoroughly frightened, he makes an excuse and refuses her help.**

**My version - Being best friends, Natsumi doesn't question Hinata but hesitates because she fears both of them will fail. When Hinata reassures her that it's safe to copy at least one answer, she does so. Because she doesn't take as long to accept Hinata's aid, the kunai that was thrown to mark the person behind her whizzes behind her head instead of in front of her face. That causes a certain incident to happen. At the end of that, she doesn't get to copy from Hinata anyway, but not because she refused.**

**The kiss.**

**Canon - Naruto kisses Sasuke much, much earlier, during the time when they were being divided into teams. The result of that causes Naruto to get beat up by all his female classmates except for Hinata for his transgression of 'stealing' Sasuke's first kiss when it was purely accidental due to someone bumping Naruto into Sasuke.**

**My version - Natsumi kisses Hinata during the first part of the Chuunin Exam due to losing her balance from the surprise of the kunai whizzing just barely past the back of her head. No violence occurs because of Ibiki's rules but disarray does happen. After a comment from Ibiki, Hinata faints and Natsumi has to care for her.**

**Extra Scene - Kakashi, Kurenai and Asuma overhear two Chuunins talking about Natsumi's and Hinata's accident. Kakashi makes some light banter about it before making a sudden serious comment concerning Natsumi. The Rookie Nine then gets the details of where the second part of the Chuunin Exam. Natsumi and Hinata are told to stay behind and get teased by Kakashi because he heard about their accident.**

*****Break Line*****

**Here we are in the Chuunin Exam Arc! This is just the first part of the Chuunin Exam, so things are just going to build up from here on! I'm not writing about the second part of the exam in the Forest Of Death. In my opinion, the Forest Of Death is more focused on character development for Sakura and Sasuke. So the next chapter will jump straight to the elimination matches where the action will be.**

**I look forward to getting more readers who like this story! Do Like/Follow/Review this story, and big thanks to those who are kind enough to do so!**


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